Digital CBTI for Comorbid Insomnia in Chronic Migraine

NCT ID: NCT05244889

Last Updated: 2025-01-09

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 88 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2022-01-31
• Study Completion Date: 2025-03-31

Brief Summary

The overall aims of the study are:

Aim 1: Estimate effect sizes: To estimate the effects of dCBT-I on insomnia symptoms compared to a control group (sleep hygiene education) and estimate the relationship between changes in insomnia symptoms and the reduction in migraines.

Aim 2: Explore mechanisms of change: To explore the mechanisms underlining the change in migraine symptoms.

Aim 3: Assess barriers to conducting a full-scale RCT: To collect data on recruitment pace and dropouts in both groups, which will help refine the methodology and maximise uptake and retention of a full-scale randomised control trial (RCT). The investigators will conduct qualitative interviews with a select number of participants and practitioners to identify motivators/barriers in uptake of a digitalised version of CBT-I.

Detailed Description

Chronic migraine (CM) is a debilitating condition that places a direct burden worth £150 million on the NHS per year. Previous research has shown that insomnia is a risk factor for migraines. The investigators hypothesise that two modifiable behaviours explain this relationship between insomnia and migraines: daytime napping and nocturnal light exposure. To cope with the migraines, individuals will nap during the day, reducing the homeostatic drive for sleep at night and delaying sleep onset. This inability to fall asleep potentially increases exposure to evening bright light, delaying the release of the hormone melatonin and reducing sleep quality. Poor sleep in turn is a trigger for migraines, which creates a vicious cycle of migraines and poor sleep. The investigators believe that these behavioural mechanisms are valid targets for treatment and are explicitly addressed in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). Digital versions of CBT-I (dCBT-I) offer a scalable solution to the problem of limited access to CBT-I. This research group has demonstrated the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary efficacy of dCBT-I in an uncontrolled proof-of concept study. Utilising randomised control trial (RCT) methodology, the investigator's aim now is to evaluate the effectiveness of dCBT-I for improving insomnia and migraines in patients with chronic migraines. The second aim is to probe mechanism of change and to test the hypotheses that behavioural markers such as daytime napping and evening light exposure can reduce insomnia symptoms leading to an improvement in migraines. Prior to progressing to a full-scale RCT, the investigators require a feasibility RCT, to refine the methodology. The investigators propose to recruit individuals who meet criteria for CM and insomnia, directly referred from two neurology clinics, who will act as clinical recruiters. Eighty-eight participants will be randomised either to a dCBT-I group or to sleep hygiene education (SHE) control group. The main outcomes are insomnia and migraine days and will be collected at post-treatment, and long-term effects will be assessed at month 6.

Conditions

Insomnia Chronic; Migraine Disorders

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: SINGLE

Study Groups

Digital CBT-I

After assignment to dCBT-I, participants will complete a baseline assessment of their sleep, migraines and other outcomes and complete a 30-day sleep and headache diary, and wear an actigraphy device for 7 days to record their sleep and light exposure. They will then be given access to the 6-session dCBT-I programme. At month 1, participants will wear an actigraph device for 1 week.. At month 3 participants will complete a 30-day post-treatment assessment including a sleep and headache diary and the same battery of questionnaires as during the baseline assessment. A subset of participants (and providers) will be invited to participate in an interview about uptake of dCBT-I. At month 6, all participants will complete follow-up questionnaires (similar to baseline and post-treatment questionnaires) and one last 30-day assessment of sleep and headaches and wear a 7-day actigraphy device.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Digital CBT-I

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

The digital CBT-I intervention (www.sleepio.com) consists of six weekly sessions of CBT-I delivered over the internet by an animated virtual therapist known as "The Prof". The content includes behavioral (e.g. sleep restriction, stimulus control), cognitive (e.g. putting the day to rest, thought re-structuring, mindfulness) strategies, relaxation strategies (e.g., progressive muscle relaxation) and advice on lifestyle and bedroom factors (sleep hygiene). Although the sessions can be completed at the persons own pace, the shortest interval between individual sessions is 7 days, thus participants can complete the course in 6 weeks, or take as long as 12 weeks. As part of the SLEEPIO program, participants will be required to enter their sleep/wake patterns using electronic sleep diaries. There is no face-to-face contact throughout the intervention and all treatment sessions, support and reminders are provided through the online platform.

Sleep Hygiene Education (SHE)

After assignment to SHE, participants will complete a baseline assessment of their sleep, migraines and other outcomes and complete a 30-day sleep and headache diary, and wear an actigraphy device for 7 days to record their sleep and light exposure. They will then be given access to the 6-session SHE programme. At month 1, participants will wear an actigraph device for 1 week.. At month 3 participants will complete a 30-day post-treatment assessment including a sleep and headache diary and the same battery of questionnaires as during the baseline assessment. A subset of participants (and providers) will be invited to participate in an interview about uptake of SHE. At month 6, all participants will complete follow-up questionnaires (similar to baseline and post-treatment questionnaires) and one last 30-day assessment of sleep and headaches and wear a 7-day actigraphy device.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Sleep Hygiene Education

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Sleep Hygiene Education (SHE) has successfully been used as a control condition in other trials evaluating dCBT-I42. SHE does not have any therapeutic benefits for individuals with insomnia alone, but is often part of usual care. Consequently it is a credible alternative to dCBT-I. The sleep hygiene education will be provided on a website with access to information about lifestyle changes (e.g., reducing exercise in the evening, light snack before bedtime, reducing caffeine) and changes to the bedroom environment (e.g., dark room, comfortable mattress, optimal room temperature). As with the dCBT-I group, participants will not be required to make any changes to their usual care.

Interventions

Digital CBT-I

The digital CBT-I intervention (www.sleepio.com) consists of six weekly sessions of CBT-I delivered over the internet by an animated virtual therapist known as "The Prof". The content includes behavioral (e.g. sleep restriction, stimulus control), cognitive (e.g. putting the day to rest, thought re-structuring, mindfulness) strategies, relaxation strategies (e.g., progressive muscle relaxation) and advice on lifestyle and bedroom factors (sleep hygiene). Although the sessions can be completed at the persons own pace, the shortest interval between individual sessions is 7 days, thus participants can complete the course in 6 weeks, or take as long as 12 weeks. As part of the SLEEPIO program, participants will be required to enter their sleep/wake patterns using electronic sleep diaries. There is no face-to-face contact throughout the intervention and all treatment sessions, support and reminders are provided through the online platform.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Sleep Hygiene Education

Sleep Hygiene Education (SHE) has successfully been used as a control condition in other trials evaluating dCBT-I42. SHE does not have any therapeutic benefits for individuals with insomnia alone, but is often part of usual care. Consequently it is a credible alternative to dCBT-I. The sleep hygiene education will be provided on a website with access to information about lifestyle changes (e.g., reducing exercise in the evening, light snack before bedtime, reducing caffeine) and changes to the bedroom environment (e.g., dark room, comfortable mattress, optimal room temperature). As with the dCBT-I group, participants will not be required to make any changes to their usual care.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

1. Women age 18 and above

2. Insomnia, satisfied by a total score ≥ 11 on the insomnia severity index (ISI)

3. Headache ≥ 15 days per month, ≥ 12 months and meet criteria for migraine with/without aura on ≥ 8 days per month, ≥ 12 months

Exclusion Criteria

1. Medical condition that is unstable, requires immediate treatment, or is judged to interfere with the protocol, including other pain conditions such as chronic low back pain and fibromyalgia and also sleep disorders such as untreated sleep apnoea or parasomnias.

2. Psychiatric condition that is judged to interfere with the study protocol including substance abuse, psychotic disorder, cognitive disorder, current suicidal ideation, or any uncontrolled psychiatric conditions that require immediate treatment

3. Regular use of illegal substances

4. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding

5. Shiftworkers

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

University of Strathclyde

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Megan Crawford

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Louise McKean

Role: STUDY_CHAIR

University of Strathclyde

Locations

Glasgow

Glasgow, , United Kingdom

Walton Centre, Liverpool

Liverpool, , United Kingdom

Countries

United Kingdom

Other Identifiers

BRUK 202021-29

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id