Can heart rehab and brain training sharpen thinking?

NCT ID NCT07829380

NEW Prevention Sponsor: National Heart Centre Singapore Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Sep 21, 2026 · Last updated Sep 21, 2026

Summary

Researchers are studying how heart conditions affect memory and thinking, and whether a 24-week program of cardiac rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation can improve cognitive function. The trial enrolls 5,000 adults, including a subgroup with mild cognitive impairment. Participants in the intervention arm receive hospital-based instruction and home telehealth sessions that combine physical heart rehab with brain training exercises. The main goal is to see if this combined approach leads to meaningful gains on standardized cognitive tests.

What this could mean

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

Active substance: a 24-week program combining cardiac rehabilitation instruction with cognitive stimulation delivered through hospital visits and home-based telehealth
What this could lead to: If the program helps, it could offer a practical way to protect memory and thinking in people with heart conditions, using exercise and brain training rather than drugs.
What could go wrong: This is an early-phase, non-drug study, so any benefit may be modest or fade after the program ends. Participants must commit to 24 weeks of sessions, and the results may not apply to people with different heart conditions or more severe cognitive problems.

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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

About 5,000 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Aug 2026

Expected to finish

Dec 2030

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

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

21 to 99 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

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

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: Main Study: * Age ≥ 21 years. * Able and willing (or via legally acceptable representative, LAR, where appropriate) to provide informed consent. RCT Sub-Study (Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) arm): * Meets main study criteria. * Mild cognitive impairment defined by: (i) Montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA) \<26 but ≥21; and/or (ii) impairment in at least one domain on standardized neuropsychological testing and/or (iii) MMSE \<28 but ≥24. Exclusion Criteria: * Neurodegenerative disorders or major psychiatric illnesses that substantially impair cognition. * Terminal illness or advanced major organ disease limiting participation with expected survival of less than 1 year. * Severe depression, anxiety, or stress where participation may be inappropriate. * Any condition which, in the investigator's opinion, would compromise safety or study integrity. Note: Pregnant and breast-feeding women may not take part in this study.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

cardiovascular disorder Cognitive Dysfunction

As listed by the trial registrant

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

Cognitive impairment

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

The places running it

4 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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.

Can heart rehab and brain training sharpen thinking?

What the study statuses mean