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Transposition Great ArteriesBCAS-AdultNCT03073122

The Boston Circulatory Arrest Study: Antecedents and Correlates of Well-Being in Adults With Congenital Heart Disease

An observational study of Transposition Great Arteries and Executive Dysfunction, run by Boston Children's Hospital at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

In the landmark Boston Circulatory Arrest Study, neurologic and developmental status was measured following infant heart surgery and then prospectively at ages 1, 2.5, 4, 8, and 16 years, with findings of significant neurocognitive deficits and brain MRI abnormalities regardless of operative management. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 24 to 33 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
What is being tested?
Brain MRI, neurocognitive and psychological testing
How many people
127 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
9 Nov 2017to 31 Jan 2023
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 24 to 33 years
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult

Study population: Study Group: All children enrolled in the original boston circulatory arrest study who are alive and living in the US will be invited to participate. We estimate that about 165 adults will be eligible to participate as we will again attempt to contact those patients who did not participate in the 16 year follow-up. Controls (for MRI): A group of 50 normally-developed age- and sex-matched young adults ages 24-30 years old who are able to provide informed consent to undergo the MRI portion of the study and limited neuropsychiatric (NP) evaluation. These controls will be recruited from the local metro-Boston area and we will frequency-match control patients to study patients by gender, integer age and handedness.

Who may be able to join

  • Prior participation in the Boston Circulatory Arrest Study
  • Informed consent

Who cannot join

  • Disorders that would prevent successful completion of the planned study testing (severe developmental impairment to prevent answering surveys and participating in interviews)
  • Participants lack of reading fluency in English, which is the only language for which we have the ability to do neuropsychology testing, and for which questionnaires have been validated
  • Women who are currently pregnant will be excluded from the MRI portion of the study only
  • Control Group:
  • Control Inclusion Criteria
  • Age 24-30 years at the time of enrollment
Show all 13Show fewer
  • Informed consent
  • Control Exclusion Criteria
  • Conditions that would prevent successful completion of the planned study testing (MRI) (e.g., pacemaker, metal implants, orthodontia)
  • Congenital heart disease requiring surgical correction
  • Lack of reading fluency in English, the only language for which questionnaires have been validated
  • Because we purposefully wish to compare d-TGA patients with those in optimal neurodevelopmental health, we will use the exclusion criteria for the NIH-funded project, "MRI study of normal brain development."
  • Current pregnancy

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Boston Children's Hospital

    Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

Other trials in United States

About this study

In the landmark Boston Circulatory Arrest Study, neurologic and developmental status was measured following infant heart surgery and then prospectively at ages 1, 2.5, 4, 8, and 16 years, with findings of significant neurocognitive deficits and brain MRI abnormalities regardless of operative management. To date, no study has evaluated the neuropsychological and neuroimaging antecedents and correlates of well-being in adults with congenital heart disease, a population now >1 million and projected to grow at 5% per year. The investigators propose to study the Boston cohort at ages 24-29 years to assess the associations of adult well-being with childhood and adolescent executive function, other measures of mental health and cognitive function, adolescent brain MRI findings, and clinical variables; findings will guide the design of interventions in childhood to optimize outcomes in adults with congenital heart disease.

Read the detailed description

Previously lethal, critical congenital heart disease (CHD) can now be treated effectively with surgical, catheter, and medical interventions. The resulting dramatic improvement in life expectancy has brought a major demographic shift, so that adult patients with CHD now outnumber children with CHD, even for complex conditions. Adult survivors are at increased risk of anxiety, depression, social difficulties, lower educational attainment, and underemployment. These psychosocial morbidities may be associated with deficits in executive functions (EFs) and other neurocognitive abilities that are prevalent in children and adolescents with CHD. Deficits in EFs, represented by measures of inhibitory control, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and decision-making, are highly dependent on the integrity of cortical and subcortical neural networks that continue to develop into early adulthood and can have a major adverse impact on self-regulation and management. The goal of this proposal is to bridge the gap in knowledge between known executive function deficits in childhood CHD and adult well-being. The investigators propose to accomplish our goal by studying subjects, now age 24-29 years, who were enrolled as infants in the Boston Circulatory Arrest Study and then studied with respect to neuropsychological and developmental function at ages 1, 2.5, 4, 8, and 16 years, as well as with brain MRI at 16 years. In Aim 1, the relationship of EFs to major dimensions of adult well-being will be explored. It is hypothesized that lower performance on EFs will be related to poorer overall well-being. The outcomes measured to determine well-being will be quality of life, neuropsychological function (e.g. social cognition, memory skills), mental health diagnosis and function (e.g. anxiety, depression), social relatedness, academic achievement, and adult independence (e.g. employment status, medical follow up). In Aim 2, the relationship of EFs to MRI-derived measures of brain structure, function, and connectivity will be determined. It is hypothesized that lower performance on EFs will be associated with lower global efficiency (integration) and higher modularity (segregation). The brain MRI outcomes will be measured using global white matter connectivity, regional cortical gray matter thickness, gray matter connectivity measured from interregional correlation in cortical thickness, and functional connectivity as defined by resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging. In Aim 3, longitudinal models will be used to analyze the association of adult well-being with earlier measures of EFs and other neurocognitive and mental health variables, as well as with earlier clinical variables and adolescent neuroimaging. The associations of adult well-being dimensions with childhood and adolescent EFs, other measures of mental health and cognitive function, adolescent brain MRI findings, and clinical variables will be explored. The ultimate goal is to identify early, modifiable risk factors for adult performance to guide the design of targeted treatment strategies that optimize educational achievement, employability, and quality of life in the burgeoning population of adults with CHD.

Being tested
Brain MRI, neurocognitive and psychological testing
Medical subject headings
Transposition of Great Vessels

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Brain MRI, neurocognitive and psychological testingDiagnostic test

    MRI of the brain and multiple tests of neurocognitive and psychological function including executive function, anxiety and depression

Study groups in NCT03073122
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
TGA CaseBrain MRI, Neurocognitive and psychological testing
Receives: Diagnostic Test: Brain MRI, neurocognitive and psychological testing
ControlBrain MRI, Neurocognitive and psychological testing
Receives: Diagnostic Test: Brain MRI, neurocognitive and psychological testing

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Quality of Life health related

    Linear analog scale, Quality of Life Survey

    Measured: baseline

Secondary outcomes (11)
  1. Mental health - Anxiety

    Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale and the structured clinical interview for DSM-V

    Measured: baseline

  2. Mental Health - Depression

    Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale and the structured clinical interview for DSM-V

    Measured: baseline

  3. Mental health - ADHD

    structured clinical interview for DSM-V and Connors' Adult ADHD Rating Scales - Screening Version

    Measured: baseline

  4. Mental health - PTSD

    structured clinical interview for DSM-V

    Measured: baseline

  5. Mental health - Stress

    1. The Stress \& Self-Efficacy (Perceived Stress; Self-Efficacy) subdomain of the NIH Toolbox Emotion Domain

    Measured: baseline

  6. Neurocognitive - Executive function

    1. The Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS) includes nine subtests: Trail-Making, Verbal Fluency, Design Fluency, Color-Word Interference, Card Sorting, Twenty Questions, Word Context, Tower, and Proverb.
    2. The NIH Toolbox Assessment of Neurological and Behavioral Function, executive function battery is a set of computerized assessments that measure: (a) Inhibitory control (Flanker Inhibitory Control and Attention Test); (b) Working Memory (List Sorting Working Memory Test); (c) Cognitive Flexibility (Dimensional Change Card Sort Test).
    3. The NIH Toolbox Processing Speed assesses the time it takes to process a set amount of information. It yields a main endpoint score.
    4. The Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function for Adults (BRIEF-A) includes 75 items that yield 9 clinical scales grouped into two indexes: Behavioral Regulation and Metacognition.

    Measured: baseline

  7. Neurocognitive - Risk taking behavior

    Iowa Gambling Task (IGT)

    Measured: baseline

  8. Neurocognitive - social cognition

    1. The "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" Task (revised) is a computer-administered task assessing mental state attribution.
    2. The Advanced Clinical Solutions for WAIS-IV and WMS IV (ACS) is a set of tasks that assess aspects of social cognition, such as affect labeling, affect recognition from faces and prosody, identification of sarcasm, and the ability to verbalize intent of a speaker.
    3. The Autism Spectrum Quotient is a self-report questionnaire covering five domains of autism spectrum disorder: social skills, communication skills, imagination, attention to detail, and attention switching/tolerance of change

    Measured: baseline

  9. Neurocognitive - memory

    1. The NIH Toolbox Picture Sequence Memory Test evaluates episodic memory.
    2. The Wechsler Memory Scale IV (WMS-IV) provides a comprehensive evaluation of memory abilities in adults, including auditory, visual, immediate, and delayed memory

    Measured: baseline

  10. mental health - social relatedness

    The NIH Toolbox Emotion Domain - The Social Relationships subdomain measures will be administered.

    Measured: baseline

  11. Employment status

    Categories from the National health interview survey and Hollingshead four factor index

    Measured: baseline

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted8 Mar 2017
  2. Study start9 Nov 2017
  3. Primary completion1 Nov 2021
  4. Study completion31 Jan 2023

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Cohort
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrolment
127 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03073122
Sponsor's protocol ID
P00023574
Other IDs
1R01HL135061-01
Acronym
BCAS-Adult
Status last verified
Aug 2023
First submitted
3 Jan 2017
Last updated
16 Aug 2023
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Transposition Great Arteries and Executive Dysfunction, run by Boston Children's Hospital at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 13 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 Aug 2023. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Quality of Life health related (time frame: baseline). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 Aug 2023.

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