New study aims to find best talk therapy for traumatized teens with chronic illness
NCT ID NCT07483333
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Sep 16, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study will enroll 400 youth aged 8-18 with chronic medical conditions who have experienced trauma. Participants will first receive group therapy using either SPARCS or UP, two evidence-based talk therapies. Those who still need help after group therapy will then receive individual therapy. The goal is to see which approach or combination reduces trauma symptoms and improves daily functioning over 48 weeks.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Structured Psychotherapy for Adolescents Responding to Chronic Stress (SPARCS) and Unified Protocol (UP) — both are talk therapy programs
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could show which therapy or combination works best to help youth with chronic illness cope with trauma and improve their mental health and daily life.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage study comparing existing therapies, not testing a new drug. Results may not apply to all youth, and some participants may not improve as hoped.
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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About 400 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Oct 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2029
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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8 to 18 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: * Youth (aged 8-18 years) who received a SPIRIT program psychological trauma screening and were deemed clinically appropriate for SPIRIT group therapy. Clinically appropriate means the youth can historically engage in a group setting (e.g., school, camp, therapy group) without significant disruption to the group process or other participants. * Youth and parent/legal guardian are willing and able to provide informed consent/assent for randomization. * Youth and parent/legal guardian are fluent in English or Spanish. * Youth is not currently engaged in individual therapy at the time of enrollment (per patient/parent report). Exclusion Criteria: * Wards of the state or DCFS youth in care. * Youth with reported or observed symptoms that would significantly impair group therapy engagement, including but not limited to: intellectual disability, moderate-to-severe autism spectrum disorder, active suicidal ideation, uncontrolled psychosis, or other acute psychiatric symptoms that could disrupt the group process. * Regular use of alcohol or other substances that interfere with participation or disrupt the group process. * Youth requiring immediate higher-level psychiatric care (e.g., intensive outpatient programming, partial hospitalization, inpatient psychiatric admission, or residential treatment) at the time of first randomization.
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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.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
RECRUITINGChicago, Illinois, 60611, United States
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