Can a 6-Week online course help teens with anorexia? new study aims to find out
NCT ID NCT07435818
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study is testing whether a 6-session online program called Metacognitive Training for Eating Disorders (MCT-ED) is practical and acceptable for teenagers aged 13-19 with anorexia or atypical anorexia. The program helps teens recognize and change unhelpful thinking patterns related to perfectionism and flexibility. Researchers will measure how many teens agree to join, complete the sessions, and find the program helpful, as well as monitor for any safety concerns.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Metacognitive Training for Eating Disorders (MCT-ED) - a behavioral intervention delivered online in six sessions
- What this could lead to
- If this small feasibility study works, it could point toward a new, accessible psychological support option for teens with anorexia that helps them manage unhelpful thinking patterns.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early, small study with only 14 participants and no control group. It only tests if the program is acceptable and practical, not whether it actually improves eating disorder symptoms. Results may not apply to all teens with anorexia.
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
-
About 14 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
-
Mar 2026
- Expected to finish
-
Jun 2027
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
-
13 to 19 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 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: * Adolescents aged 13 to 19 years; * Diagnosis of Anorexia Nervosa or Atypical Anorexia Nervosa; confirmed by the treating child and adolescent psychiatrist according to DSM-5-TR or ICD-11 criteria; * Currently followed in an Eating Disorder Outpatient Consultation; * Fluent in Portuguese. Exclusion Criteria: * Acute suicidal ideation or behaviour requiring immediate clinical intervention; * Imminent risk of hospitalization due to clinical deterioration; * Current diagnosis of psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, or substance dependence; * Any clinical condition that, in the judgment of the treating clinician, would make participation in a videoconference-based intervention inappropriate.
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Anorexia nervosa are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
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.
-
The places running it
1 site. 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.
-
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
-
Hospital Beatriz Ângelo - Unidade Local de Saúde Loures-Odivelas, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Service, Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Loures, Portugal
RECRUITINGLoures, Portugal
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can the Brain's Information-Integration process explain Anorexia's grip?
- Can a pudding snack reveal how the brain misreads the stomach?
- Could the gut microbiome hold clues to eating disorder recovery?
- Can a parent support group help teens with both autism and anorexia?
- Lab-Grown brain cells could unlock Anorexia's secrets
- Can science unlock the secrets of the naturally lean?