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The Brain Health Champion Study

The Brain Health Champion Study: Promoting Non-pharmacological Interventions in Cognitive Disorders and Those at Risk

Status
Active, not recruiting
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT03772977
Acronym
BHC
Enrollment
95
Registered
2018-12-12
Start date
2017-05-08
Completion date
2026-12-31
Last updated
2026-07-10

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

At Risk for Cognitive Decline, Dementia, Mild, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Subjective Cognitive Decline

Keywords

mild cognitive impairment, dementia risk reduction, brain health

Brief summary

6-month, randomized, controlled investigation measuring the effect of increased clinical contact and personalization compared to standard physician counseling on adherence to consensus-based, brain health recommendations for patients with subjective cognitive decline, mild cognitive impairment, and early dementia or patients who are at risk for developing these conditions.

Detailed description

This is a 6-month, randomized, controlled investigation measuring the effect of increased clinical contact and personalized recommendations from a health coach, compared to standard physician counseling on adherence to consensus-based, brain health recommendations, including 80 patients with either subjective cognitive decline, MCI, or early dementia enrolled from a hospital-based memory disorders clinic, or, with risk factors for dementia enrolled from a hospital-based primary care clinic. Participants and caregivers in the health coach arm work with a health coach within their respective practice, called the a "brain health champion" (BHC), through weekly motivational phone calls every 6 weeks. In the encounters and visits, BHCs and patients/caregivers work together to establish, update, and achieve personalized, attainable lifestyle goals. Participants in the control arm receive standard counseling and education from providers during routine clinic visits. Changes in physical activity, dietary pattern, and social and cognitive activities are measured using questionnaires validated in cognitively impaired and normal populations. Other outcomes include measures of quality of life (QOL), cognitive function, neuropsychiatric status, sleep quality, and behavior. Follow-up assessments are also completed at 6 months post-intervention, with some patients receiving "booster" encounters to assess the maintenance of behaviors.

Interventions

BEHAVIORALBrain Health Champion

A health coach embedded within an existing clinical care team

Sponsors

Brigham and Women's Hospital
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
60 Years to 79 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Be age 60 to 79 * Existing patient at Brigham Health system with at least one prior visit with providers and plans to establish/continue longitudinal care * Be sufficiently fluent in the English language to understand instructions and perform the cognitive and functional tests * For neurology participants only: Have a diagnosis of Subjective Cognitive Disorder (SCD) (MMSE guideline 27-30), Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer disease (AD), cerebrovascular disease (CVD), or mixed-type AD/CVD (MMSE guideline 24-30), or mild dementia due to AD, CVD, or mixed-AD/CVD (MMSE guideline 20-30). In some cases, based on the clinical judgment of the treating neurologist, we may enroll a patient who falls outside of these guidelines or whose diagnosis and overall level of functioning does not perfectly correlate to their MMSE score. * For primary care participants only: Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging, and Incidence of Dementia (CAIDE) dementia risk score of ≥ 6, or score of 5 plus one of the following: a history of ADRD in a first-degree relative, or type II diabetes or "pre-diabetes" spectrum (A1C level ≥ 5.7)

Exclusion criteria

* Be enrolled in another health behavior or non-pharmacologic intervention for a neurocognitive disorder * Be unable to or unwilling to carry out regular physical exercise, multiple times weekly. * Be not recommended to participate by their Internist/Primary Care Provider due to health-related concerns.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Self-report adherence to Mediterranean diet6 monthsGoulet Mediterranean Diet Score (questionnaire). Measured adherence to the Mediterranean Diet. Likert Scale 0-44, with higher values indicating stronger adherence to the dietary pattern.
Self-report participation in cognitive and socially stimulating activities6 monthsFlorida Cognitive Activities Scale (questionnaire). Measures participation in socially and cognitively stimulating activities. Likert Scale 0-180, with higher values indicating greater participation.
Self-report exercise and physical activity6 monthsPhysical Activity Scale for the Elderly (questionnaire). Measures walking, moderate, and vigorous activity. Zero lower limit, no upper limit. Higher values indicate more physical activity.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Quality of Life Self-Report6 monthsFlanagan Quality of Life Scale (questionnaire). Measures quality of life. Likert scale 0-112, higher values indicate higher quality of life.
Neuropsychiatric status6 monthsNeuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire. Measures caregiver report of 12 neuropsychiatric symptoms, severity (1-3) and distress (0-5) with higher values indicating more neuropsychiatric symptoms.
Cognitive function6 monthsMini Mental Status Examination: Multidomain cognitive test, scored 0-30. PACC-BHC: Neurosychological test battery including: 1) Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT); 2) Logical Memory, immediate and delayed Story Recall; 3) Visual Paired Associates; 4) Digit-Symbol Substitution Test; 5) Trail Making Test, Part A; 6) Trail Making, Part B; 7) Number Span, 8) Category Fluency (animals, fruits, vegetables); and 9) Phonemic Fluency.
Sleep6 monthsMedical Outcomes Study Sleep Scale Likert scale measuring sleep quality and sleep problems index. 0-60 with greater values representing higher sleep quality and lower sleep problems.

Countries

United States

Contacts

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORSeth A Gale, MD

Brigham and Women's Hospital

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Jul 11, 2026