Brain training in a 'high-altitude' room may boost memory in depression
NCT ID NCT06121206
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested a three-week program where healthy adults and people with depression or bipolar disorder did cognitive training inside a room with low oxygen (like being at 4,400 meters altitude). The goal was to see if the combination improves memory, attention, and executive function. 190 participants were split into groups comparing the low-oxygen training with normal-oxygen training or no training. The results may show whether this approach can help with thinking problems in mood disorders.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Altitude-like hypoxia (12% oxygen) combined with cognitive training
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug way to boost memory and thinking in people with mood disorders.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with healthy volunteers and stable patients. The effects may be small or not last, and the hypoxia room may cause discomfort or side effects.
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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190 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Feb 2023
- Finished
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Jul 2025
- 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 65 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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 (substudy 1): * 18-50 years * No psychiatric history * Fluency in Danish Inclusion Criteria (substudy 2): * 18-65 years * International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder or depression confirmed with the Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry (SCAN) * Fluency in Danish * Partial or full remission (defined as a score of ≤14 on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale 17-items (HDRS-17) and the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) * Objectively-verified cognitive impairment according to Screen for Cognitive Impairment in Psychiatry (SCIP) and/or self-reported cognitive impairment measured with Cognitive Complaints in Bipolar disorder Rating Assessment (COBRA). For SCIP, their performance must be ≥0.5 standard deviations (SD) below their demographically adjusted expected total SCIP score or on minimum 2 SCIP subtest scores. For COBRA, patients must report substantial cognitive impairment defined as a score ≥14. Common Exclusion Criteria: * Schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder * Neurological disorder * Alcohol or substance abuse * History of serious head trauma * Previous altitude sickness * Heart disease * Diabetes * Renal failure * Untreated/insufficiently treated hypertension * Thromboses or thromboembolic events * First-degree family with thromboembolic events before age 60 * Pregnancy * Breastfeeding * Smoking or use other nicotine products regularly * BMI\>30 * Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) 3 months prior to participation * Dyslexia * Claustrophobia (MRI scans) * Pacemaker and/or other MRI incompatible metal implants (MRI scans) * Participation in experiments with radioactivity (\>10 mSv) within the last year (PET scans) * Significant occupational exposure to radioactivity (PET scans) * Medication incompatible with study aims (e.g., SV2A binding agents; PET scans)
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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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Neurocognition and Emotion in Affective Disorders (NEAD) Centre, University of Copenhagen and Psychiatric Centre Copenhagen, Frederiksberg hospital
Copenhagen, Capital Region of Copenhagen, 1353, Denmark
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