Can a smartphone app help teens with lupus and depression stay on track?
NCT ID NCT05693571
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jul 31, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study aims to understand how depression symptoms, like loss of interest, may make it harder for teens and young adults with lupus to keep up with their medical care. Researchers will also test a mobile health app designed to provide education and connect users to their care team. About 40 participants aged 15-24 from the Bronx will complete questionnaires and some will try the app for 6 months to see if it is feasible and acceptable.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Valera mobile health application
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a practical tool to help teens with lupus stay engaged in their care and manage depression symptoms.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early pilot study with only 40 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The app's benefits are not yet proven.
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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48 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Dec 2024
- Expected to finish
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Feb 2027
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.
- Ages
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15 to 25 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.
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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: * Participants 15-25 years old meeting American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Revised SLE Classification Criteria and/or European League Against Rheumatism/ACR Classification Criteria and/or 2012 SLE International Collaborating Clinic Criteria and followed at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore. * Must be diagnosed with SLE before 19 years of age (based on Childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE) definition) Exclusion Criteria: * Non-Spanish or non-English speaking * Participants anticipating transitioning to an outside rheumatologist for lupus care within the period of study follow-up * Current psychotic disorders. However, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, and substance abuse disorders are not uncommon among adolescents and young adults (AYA) and will be allowed. Suicidal ideations (SI) and self-injurious acts (cutting) are common in depression and will be allowed (defined as passive SI).
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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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Montefiore Medical Center
The Bronx, New York, 10467, United States
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