Sing Out Loud: a Choral Singing Program for Persons Living with Dementia

NCT ID: NCT06880237

Last Updated: 2025-03-17

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

NOT_YET_RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

56 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2025-03-12

Study Completion Date

2025-07-31

Brief Summary

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We intend to investigate whether a singing programme for nursing home residents living with dementia can reduce the mental and physiological effects of dementia. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. Does participating in the Sing Out Loud (SOL) singing intervention lead to an improvement in the physiological well-being (increase in oxytocin and reduction in cortisol levels) of persons living with dementia (PWDs) in nursing homes?
2. Will participation in the SOL singing intervention result in an improvement in PWDs' overall mood, temperament, and mental health (indicated by symptoms such as apathy, aggression, and depression).

Researchers will compare the singing group to the control group to see if they exhibit reduced levels of apathy, aggression, and depression, and whether their levels of oxytocin and cortisol (collected via salivary biomarkers) have increased and decreased, respectively.

Researchers will compare the SOL singing intervention with a waitlist control group to see if the SOL singing intervention increases the feelings of social connection, reduces stress, or improves the symptoms of dementia in nursing home residents.

Participants will be randomly assigned to a singing intervention or waitlist control group. The intervention involves an 8-week long singing programme with one practice session a week, culminating in an additional full dress rehearsal and private showcase performance for their family members at a concert venue.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Dementia Nursing Homes Residents

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Singing group

The intervention for the Singing group will be the 8-week SOL programme.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Singing

Intervention Type OTHER

The programme consists of nin 75-min-long singing sessions spread across 8 weeks (8 sessions are practice sessions and 1 session is a full dress rehearsal), and a final performance. The final rehearsal session and showcase performance will be held at a concert venue, while the 8 practice sessions will be conducted at the nursing home.

Each session will kick off with a "Hello song", followed by warm-up activities and vocal exercises. Participants will then sing different songs to explore and rehearse as a group, before concluding with a "Goodbye song". All sessions throughout the programme are similarly structured to provide consistency for participants.

Waitlist Control group

The Waitlist Control group will not receive any intervention during the course of the study but will receive the SOL programme in its next iteration.

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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Singing

The programme consists of nin 75-min-long singing sessions spread across 8 weeks (8 sessions are practice sessions and 1 session is a full dress rehearsal), and a final performance. The final rehearsal session and showcase performance will be held at a concert venue, while the 8 practice sessions will be conducted at the nursing home.

Each session will kick off with a "Hello song", followed by warm-up activities and vocal exercises. Participants will then sing different songs to explore and rehearse as a group, before concluding with a "Goodbye song". All sessions throughout the programme are similarly structured to provide consistency for participants.

Intervention Type OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Aged 59 to 90 years old
* Diagnosed with dementia
* Living in the nursing home
* Interested in participating in the SOL programme
* Able to provide saliva samples


* Aged 21 to 65 years old
* Is the psychologist of a patient who is participating in the SOL programme
* Is able to speak English

Exclusion Criteria

* Unable to provide saliva samples


* Unable to complete the NPI-Q questionnaire for their patient who is participating in the SOL programme
* Decline audio recording during the focus group discussion
Minimum Eligible Age

21 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

90 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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Esplanade

UNKNOWN

Sponsor Role collaborator

APEX Harmony Lodge

UNKNOWN

Sponsor Role collaborator

National University of Singapore

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Kathleen Rose Agres

Assistant Professor

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

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APEX Harmony Lodge

Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

Site Status

Countries

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Singapore

Central Contacts

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Kathleen R Agres, PhD

Role: CONTACT

65 65166666

Yifan Chen

Role: CONTACT

65 65166666

Facility Contacts

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Head of Psychosocial

Role: primary

65 65852265

Other Identifiers

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NUS-IRB-2023-164

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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