Could a home air filter help your heart?
NCT ID NCT05903950
First seen Aug 20, 2026 · Last updated Aug 21, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This trial tests whether using portable HEPA air cleaners at home can reduce exposure to fine air pollution particles and, in turn, lower systolic blood pressure in people with metabolic syndrome. Participants in Qatar will use either a real HEPA filter or a sham filter for four weeks. The study measures changes in blood pressure, blood sugar, and insulin resistance to see if cleaner indoor air can improve cardiovascular health.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- In-home portable air cleaners with HEPA filters
- What this could lead to
- If effective, using HEPA air cleaners at home could become a simple, non-drug way to lower blood pressure and improve metabolic health in polluted areas.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, short-term trial, so benefits may be modest or not last. It also only includes non-smokers with mild hypertension, so results may not apply to everyone.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Nov 2024
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 60 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Non-smokers (100% abstinence from use of any smoking or vaping product during the prior year) * Age ≥18 and less than 60 years old * Living in a single residence (home, apartment) located anywhere in Qatar * Mild systolic hypertension: screening visit systolic BP 130 to 159 mm Hg (off treatment or taking ≤ 2 BP medications that have been stable without changes during prior 4 weeks) plus ≥ 2 more additional criteria for the metabolic syndrome: * Waist circumference ≥102 cm if male and ≥88 cm if female * Fasting triglycerides ≥150 mg/dL (or taking a triglyceride-lowering medication) * HDL-C ≤ 40 mg/dL if male and ≤ 50 mg/dL if female (or taking an HDL-raising medication), * Fasting glucose ≥100 mg/dL Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy (self-reported) * Screening visit urine positive for cotinine (NicAlert \>100 ng/mL) * Living with an active smoker who smokes indoors (by self-report) * High risk conditions that prohibit allowing home BP to be \>130/80 mm Hg during the10-week trial including any cardiovascular disease (coronary artery disease, prior stroke, heart failure, peripheral arterial disease, aneurysm) or ≥ stage 3 kidney disease (estimated glomerular filtration rate \< 60 ml/min) * A medical condition placing the participant at risk from participation (per investigators) * Expected overnight travel outside their residence during the study * HEPA filter within the air conditioners of the residence (self-reported) or individual use of HEPA filter * Unable to comprehend/sign an informed consent * Lung disease requiring oxygen * Cancer receiving treatment * Screening visit: BP ≥160/100 mm Hg or fasting blood glucose ≥126 mg/dL and confirmed diabetes with follow-up HbA1c ≥6.5%. If glucose is elevated ≥126 mg/dL but HbA1c\<6.5%, they could still participate. * Medication changes in past 4 weeks. If participants are on medications for high BP or hyperlipidemia, they will need to have had stable therapy during prior 10 weeks with no planned changes during the study * Left upper arm circumference \>17 inches as this will make BP levels inaccurate with the home monitor used * Acute illness or infectious symptoms within the prior 4 weeks.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Hamad Medical Corporation
RECRUITINGDoha, Qatar
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