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Can brain training help depressed young adults stop ruminating?
NCT ID NCT06219681
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tested whether real-time fMRI neurofeedback could help young adults with major depression reduce repetitive negative thinking. Participants received either real or fake feedback while their brain activity was monitored. The trial was terminated early, so the findings are limited.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- real-time fMRI neurofeedback
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this approach could point toward a non-drug therapy for reducing repetitive negative thinking in depression.
- What could go wrong
- The trial was terminated early, so results are limited. It was a small, early-stage study, and the intervention may not work for everyone.
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
-
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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54 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jan 2024
- Finished
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Apr 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 35 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: * Young adults ages 18-35 * Participants who are able to give written informed consent prior to participation * Meeting DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for MDD who are currently depressed defined by the MINI * Participants who have RNT symptoms (Brooding subscale of Ruminative Response Scale: RRS-B ≥ 13) Exclusion Criteria: * Moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (\>30 min. loss of consciousness or \>24 hours posttraumatic amnesia) or other neurocognitive disorder with evidence of neurological deficits * Presence of co-morbid medical conditions not limited to but including cardiovascular (e.g., history of acute coronary event, stroke), pulmonary, endocrine, neurological diseases (e.g., Parkinson's disease), or gastrointestinal illness, as well as pain disorders * Current significant suicidal ideation or suicide attempt within the previous 12 months * Current psychosis * Schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder * Substance use disorder within the previous 12 months, except for mild alcohol, cannabis, or tobacco use disorder defined as less than 4 symptoms of the criteria for substance use disorder according to the MINI * Current diagnosis of post-traumatic disorder (PTSD) defined by the MINI * Severe claustrophobia * Bodily implants of unsafe paramagnetic materials such as pacemakers and aneurysm clips * Pregnancy * Current regular use of cardiovascular medications with a direct vasomotor effect, namely beta- or alpha-beta-blockers, clonidine, and antianginal agents. * Current use of more than three psychotropic medications * Evidence of recreational drug use from a urine test * Commencement of psychotropic medication for depression and/or anxiety less than a month before the study enrollment * Commencement of psychological therapy less than a month before the study enrollment * Participants who have a clinically significant or unstable cardiovascular, pulmonary, endocrine, neurological, gastrointestinal illness or unstable medical disorder will be excluded * Participants who, on arrival to the study, have a temperature greater than 100.4°F will not be allowed to initiate the study * The majority of the assessments proposed for this study have not been translated from English, thus, non-English speaking volunteers will be excluded
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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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Laureate Institute for Brain Research
Tulsa, Oklahoma, 74136, United States
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