Functional Neuroimaging Effects of Cognitive Remediation Training

University of Minnesota (UMN)

Status and phase: Completed; Phase 3

Conditions: Schizophrenia

Treatments: Behavioral: Cognitive Behavioral Social Skills Training; Other: Retest in Health Controls; Behavioral: Cognitive Remediation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT00481156

CogRehab

0404M58647

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to examine behavioral and functional brain changes occuring as a result of cognitive remediation training in patients with schizophrenia. Extension and specificity of related changes will also be examined.

Enrollment: 30 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 55 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder
• Stable outpatient

Exclusion criteria

• Current drug abuse or dependence
• History of neurological damage, disorder, or disease

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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30 participants in 3 patient groups

Patients: Cognitive Remediation

Experimental group

Description:

Patients in the cognitive REM condition attended up to 25 h of training in small groups over 4-6 weeks based on the approach to cognitive remediation described by Wexler and Bell (2005). Patients performed tasks designed to train attention and memory from the battery available within a computerized software package (CogPack Marker Software). This training protocol has been shown to improve memory and executive functioning in patients with schizophrenia (Sartory et al, 2005) and tasks chosen were designed to produce improved working memory and attention capacity in the treated group. In addition, patients in the REM group trained on the word N-back one to two times a week and on N-back tasks using a variety of other stimuli (such as faces) one to two times a week to support the generalization of working memory improvements.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Cognitive Remediation

Patients: Cognitive-Behavioral Social Skills Training

Active Comparator group

Description:

Patients in the CBSST group also attended up to 25 h of treatment but followed a manualized group therapy protocol (Granholm et al, 2005) using cognitive and behavioral therapy methods to increase patients' skills in symptom recognition, communication, problem solving, and relapse prevention. In both conditions, the facilitators interacted with the clients throughout small group (B4 patients) sessions: in the REM group, this mostly involved brief one-on-one discussions regarding task performance; in the CBSST condition, this interaction was in the context of the group milieu.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Cognitive Behavioral Social Skills Training

Controls: Retest control group

Other group

Description:

Estimate of normal brain functioning and retest effects

Treatment:

Other: Retest in Health Controls