Can pool workouts plus brain games sharpen memory in aging veterans?
NCT ID NCT04296565
First seen Sep 14, 2026 · Last updated Sep 15, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers are testing whether a combination of water-based exercise and cognitive training can improve memory in veterans with amnestic mild cognitive impairment, a condition that often precedes dementia. Participants first complete six months of pool exercise three times a week, then move to a ten-session cognitive training program. The trial compares this combined approach with usual care, which includes educational materials and regular check-ins. The main measure is a standard cognitive test that assesses memory, reasoning, language, and orientation.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- a program combining water-based exercise with cognitive training
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer veterans with mild memory problems a structured, non-drug way to slow memory decline and stay independent longer.
- What could go wrong
- The trial is small and early, so any memory benefit may be modest or fade after the program ends. Exercise and cognitive training carry low risk, but participants must commit to months of sessions and testing.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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121 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jan 2022
- Finished
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Jun 2026
- Lead sponsor
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A government agency
The lead sponsor is a US federal agency other than the NIH.
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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50 to 90 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: * Veterans of any racial or ethnic group * Diagnosis of single or multi-domain amnestic MCI using criteria per National Institute on Aging/Alzheimer's Association Guidelines * Available informant for completion of the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale * Visual and auditory acuity to allow neuropsychological testing * Willingness to participate in clinical trial for 14 months (8-month treatment phase, 6-month no-contact follow-up phase) * Musculoskeletal illness or injury (i.e., osteoporosis, degenerative disc or joint disease, arthritis, obesity) * Approval by Primary Care Provider to participate in water-based physical exercise Exclusion Criteria: Psychiatric Exclusions * Current, uncontrolled severe psychiatric disorder, such as Bipolar I, Schizophrenia, or Major Depressive Disorder as determined by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) * Diagnosis of dementia, Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) \> 0.5; modified Hachinksi score 4; or delirium. Those Veterans with scores indicative of dementia (CDR \> 0.5, modified Hachinksi 4) will be referred to the Memory Disorders Clinic at VAPAHCS for a full diagnostic work-up Medical Exclusions * History of neurological (e.g., multiple sclerosis, seizure disorder, stroke,) or system illness affecting CNS function (e.g., liver failure, kidney failure, congestive heart failure, systemic cancer) * Acute illness or unstable chronic illness, e.g., history of severe liver disease (cirrhosis, esophageal varices, ascites, portal hypertension, hepatic encephalopathy) * Current severe cardiac disease (e.g., uncontrolled atrial fibrillation, defined as mean 24 hour heart rate \>85 beats/min, or 24 hour maximal ventricular rate \>150 beats/min; uncontrolled ventricular arrhythmias, defined as recurrent ventricular tachycardia \>3 beats in succession, or 24 hour PVC count \>20%; active pericarditis or myocarditis; Class III/IV heart failure and / or ejection fraction \< 20%; thrombophlebitis; pulmonary disease with a drop in O2 Sat with exercise to 90% without oxygen; embolism within past 6 months) * Inability to participate in an exercise stress test * Inability to read, verbalize understanding and voluntarily sign the Informed Consent
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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VA Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto, California, 94304-1207, United States
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