Massive youth mental health study aims to unravel why disorders cluster
NCT ID NCT07699159
First seen Jul 13, 2026 · Last updated Jul 14, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This observational study follows 1,620 adolescents and young adults (ages 11–24) who have two or more mental health conditions, such as anxiety, depression, or ADHD. Researchers will track participants over time using interviews, questionnaires, blood tests, and brain scans to identify factors that influence how these conditions develop and change. The goal is to better understand mental health multimorbidity in youth and find biomarkers that could guide future treatments.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this study could reveal risk and protective factors that explain how multiple mental health conditions develop in youth, pointing toward better ways to predict, prevent, or treat them.
- What could go wrong
- This is an observational study, not a treatment trial, so it will not directly test any new therapy. The findings may take years to translate into clinical practice, and the complex data may not yield clear answers.
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.
- Participants
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About 1,620 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Mar 2025
- Expected to finish
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Mar 2028
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.
Who is studied
The CALM network will recruit children and youth aged 11-24 who have sought, are seeking, or are accessing mental health care from 5 partner sites in Ontario (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, McMaster Children's Hospital, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, and The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre) and 1 partner site in Alberta (Alberta Health Services) as well as the broader community. Caregivers of CALM participants will be asked to complete caregiver specific questionnaires (self-report and completing the measures based on their child/youth). When a CALM child/youth participant is approached for the study, we will ask said participant if we can contact their caregiver to participate in the study. We will then approach the caregiver for consent. No external recruitment of non-CALM participants caregivers will be implemented.
- Ages
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11 to 24 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: The participant must meet all of the inclusion criteria to be eligible for this research study: * Light Phenotype Eligibility Must sign and date the informed consent form, or provide assent and have a Substitute Decision Maker provide informed consent; Aged 11-24 years old at the time of screening; Any person within age criteria who has previously sought, is seeking, or is accessing mental health services; Are able to complete assessments in English. Deep Phenotype Eligibility Must be part of the CALM light phenotype cohort; Must sign and date the deep phenotyping informed consent form, or provide assent and have a Substitute Decision Maker provide informed consent. Light Phenotype Caregiver Participant Eligibility: Any caregiver of a CALM child/youth participant is eligible to participate in the study, insofar as the child/youth participant has consented to the light phenotype cohort and has agreed for their caregiver to be contacted to participate in the study; Must sign and date the informed consent form. Deep Phenotype Caregiver Participant Eligibility: Any caregiver of a CALM child/youth participant is eligible to participate in the study, insofar as the child/youth participant has consented to the deep phenotype cohort and has agreed for their caregiver to be contacted to participate in the study; Must sign and date the informed consent form. Exclusion Criteria: An individual who meets any of the following criteria will be excluded from participation in this research study: Light Phenotype Does not provide informed consent (for those with the capacity to consent) or assent (for those who lack the capacity to consent); For those individuals who lack the capacity to consent, the inability of the parent/legal guardian to provide informed consent for the youth is also an exclusion criterion; Those who lack capacity to consent include individuals who are non-verbal or unable to speak any English. Deep Phenotype Unable to participate in deep phenotyping protocol (e.g., MRI contraindication, uncorrected vision or hearing impairments that would interfere with data collection, unwillingness to complete assessments); No exclusion criteria are based on race, ethnicity, sex or gender. Light Phenotype Caregiver Participant Ineligibility: Caregivers of CALM child/youth participants are ineligible to participate in the study if: The child/youth participant does not agree for their caregiver to be contacted to participate in the study; The child/youth participant is not participating in the light phenotype cohort; Does not provide informed consent (for those with the capacity to consent). Those who lack capacity to consent include individuals who are non-verbal or unable to speak any English. Deep Phenotype Caregiver Participant Ineligibility: Caregivers of CALM child/youth participants are ineligible to participate in the study if: The child/youth participant does not agree for their caregiver to be contacted to participate in the study; The child/youth participant is not participating in the deep phenotype cohort (i.e., is only participating in the light phenotyping cohort); Does not provide informed consent (for those with the capacity to consent). Those who lack capacity to consent include individuals who are non-verbal or unable to speak any English.
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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
6 sites. 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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Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)
RECRUITINGToronto, Ontario, M6J1H4, Canada
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Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute
RECRUITINGOttawa, Ontario, K1H 8L1, Canada
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McMaster Children's Hospital, Hamilton Health Sciences
RECRUITINGHamilton, Ontario, L8L 2X2, Canada
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The Hospital for Sick Children
RECRUITINGToronto, Ontario, M5G 1X8, Canada
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The Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre
RECRUITINGOttawa, Ontario, K1Z 7K4, Canada
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University of Calgary
RECRUITINGCalgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
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