Brain scans may predict online therapy success for common mental health issues
NCT ID NCT04191811
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study is testing whether brain scans can predict how well people respond to internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT) for depression, insomnia, and social anxiety. Researchers will scan the brains of 150 participants before they start 12 weeks of online therapy. The goal is to see if moment-to-moment brain activity is a better predictor of success than patient questionnaires. This is an observational study, not a treatment trial, and aims to improve future treatment decisions.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (iCBT)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could lead to a way to predict which patients will benefit most from internet-based therapy, saving time and resources.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage observational study, not a treatment trial. The brain scan method may not prove useful in predicting outcomes, and results may not apply to all patients.
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 150 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Apr 2022
- Expected to finish
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Jan 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.
Who is studied
Reported in previous studies from the clinic: * Depression: mean age 37.9 (SD=11.8) yrs, 33% males, time since symptom debut, years 10.4 (SD=9.9), baseline MADRS-S scores 25.13 (SD=6.67); 72% on current psychotropic medication. * Insomnia: mean age 46.1 (SD=13.6) yrs, 70% males, baseline ISI scores 20.4 (SD=3.7); baseline MADRS-S score 25.5 (SD=6.8), 72% on current sleep medication 64%, on antidepressant medication 36%. * Social anxiety: mean age 32.51 (SD=8.98), 54% males, baseline LSAS-SR score 71.23 (SD=24.57), time since symptom debut, years 15.95 (SD=10.99), on current psychotropic medication 68% (SD=0.47).
- Ages
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18 years and older
- 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: * Meeting DSM-5 criteria for depression, social anxiety or insomnia. Diagnosis and measures of symptom burden and functional level are made through a structured interview, the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I.) and self-assessments of symptoms. Healthy controls should not be relevant to psychiatric treatment nor meet criteria for any psychiatric condition according to the M.I.N.I. * Being able to read, write and speak Swedish in order to be able to read the treatment texts and be able to make phone calls. * Having basic computer skills to be able to complete surveys via the Internet and access the treatment platform. Exclusion Criteria: * Physical or mental illnesses who are either contraindicated for treatment (for example, bipolar disorder that can be exacerbated by treatment) or for other reasons need other treatments (e.g. severe depression, suicidal behavior, psychotic illnesses or extensive cognitive difficulties). * High alcohol consumption or other ongoing drug use. * Answering "yes" to any of the following questions will be excluded for participation: 1) "Have you or have you had any electrical / battery operated implants in your body? For example, a pacemaker, medication pump, neurostimulator, hearing implant, or other electrical / battery controlled implant?" 2) "Have you done any surgery on the abdomen, chest, heart or brain, eyes, ears? For example, vessel clips, or objects such as screws, heart valve, shunt or prosthesis?" 3) "Do you have or have you had any metallic object in your body?" 4) "If a woman, are you pregnant or breastfeeding?" 5) "Do you undergo dialysis or have kidney dysfunction?" Participants who answer yes to these follow-up questions will be interviewed more closely to determine if MRI security can be guaranteed and whether the MRI signal will have significant disruptions, for example due to dental scaffolding. 1) "If you have any abdominal, thoracic, heart or brain, eyes, ears? Do you have any inoperable object that has ferromagnetic properties?" The patient will be asked to consult his doctor about this. 2) "If you have a dental rack, what type of dental rack (fixed or removable, metal plates / rails or wire)"?
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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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Internetpsykiatri
RECRUITINGHuddinge, Stockholm County, 14152, Sweden
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