Can sleep deprivation and light therapy beat the blues in just one week?

NCT ID NCT05691647

Recruiting now Symptom relief Sponsor: St. Olavs Hospital Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tests whether chronotherapy—a combination of staying awake for 34 hours, light therapy, and a fixed sleep schedule—can quickly improve depression symptoms when added to standard care. 76 adults with moderate to severe depression will be randomly assigned to get chronotherapy plus usual treatment or usual treatment alone. The main goal is to see if symptoms drop more in the chronotherapy group after one week.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only — not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: chronotherapy (sleep deprivation, sleep-phase advancement, light therapy)
What this could lead to: If it works, this could offer a fast-acting, drug-free way to reduce depression symptoms within a week.
What could go wrong: This is a small, early-stage trial with only 76 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. Sleep deprivation can be tough to tolerate and may not work for all.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

major depressive disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

DEPRESSIVE EPISODE

Contacts and locations

Locations

St. Olavs Hospital, Nidaros DPS
RECRUITING

Trondheim, Norway

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