Talking it out: could CBT ease anxiety and depression in IBD patients?
NCT ID NCT05377840
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can reduce anxiety and depression in people with inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis). Participants receive either psychologist-led or self-administered CBT over 8 weeks. The goal is to see if mental health improves, offering a potential non-drug option for managing these common emotional challenges.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a drug-free way to improve mental health in people with IBD.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early study with only 13 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. CBT requires time and effort, and not everyone responds.
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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13 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Jul 2022
- Finished
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Jun 2026
- 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 years and older
- 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * verified inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis) * IBD patients on a stable treatment regimen with no evidence of active intestinal inflammation based on either normal c-reactive protein and/or fecal calprotectin, imaging studies, or endoscopy who meet the criteria for anxiety or depression based on the screening questionnaires * subjects who have been on stable doses of anxiety and/or depression medications (defined as no dose adjustment in the prior 12 weeks) at the screening visit who meet the criteria for anxiety and/or depression based on screening questionnaires and are willing to stay on the same dose of these medications throughout the study duration * may meet the criteria for both anxiety and depression and cohort assignment will be based on the survey with the highest scores suggesting more severe symptoms Exclusion Criteria: * declines to participate for the full duration of the study * evidence of active intestinal inflammation based on an elevated c-reactive protein and/or fecal calprotectin, imaging studies or endoscopy * non-English speaker * any subject who expresses suicidal ideation or has severe mental illness as they will be taken to the emergency room for urgent psychiatric care
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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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Yale New Haven Hospital
New Haven, Connecticut, 06520, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a liquid diet calm Crohn's in kids?
- New drug ATTO-1091 put to the test for safety in ulcerative colitis
- Antiparasitic drug tested as new weapon against ulcerative colitis