Empower Your Mind to Embrace Your Life: an Online ACT Intervention for Young-Onset Parkinson's Disease

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Empower your mind to embrace your life: An eight-session Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for young-onset Parkinson's disease, applied in a group format and delivered online (via videoconferencing).

Study summary

Parkinson's disease (PD) has a substantial impact on daily life and significantly affects functioning, mental health and quality of life. Although considered a disease of the elderly, an early diagnosis is also common. Non-pharmacological interventions have been increasingly recommended for PD, including psychotherapy, with emerging evidence suggesting that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) may be suitable to support individuals living with PD. This project aims to expand the current evidence for ACT interventions in this population by developing, implementing, and investigating the preliminary efficacy of a novel online-delivered ACT intervention (Empower your mind to embrace your life) for individuals with a diagnosis of young-onset PD. For this purpose, a feasibility study will be conducted to assess the acceptability and preliminary efficacy of the intervention across two groups (control and ACT intervention). This group-based intervention consists of eight weekly sessions and will be delivered in an online format (via videoconferencing). Outcome measurement will be assessed at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at 3-month follow-up. When comparing changes in outcome variables between the control and intervention groups at post-treatment, improvements are expected only in the intervention group. These improvements are also expected to be maintained over time (at 3-month follow-up). Lastly, changes in psychological (in)flexibility processes are expected to predict changes in outcome variables in the intervention group. This study will provide important insights to research and clinical practice by providing data on the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of this novel ACT-based intervention for the context of young-onset PD.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire - short form (PDQ-8) — Baseline, Week 8, 3-month follow-up
  The PDQ-8 was used to measure Parkinson's disease specific health-related quality of life through 8 items. This self-report instrument covers domains such as mobility, activities of daily living, emotional well-being, social support, communication, cognition, bodily discomfort and stigma. Each item is answered on a five-point Likert scale (ranging from 0 = Never; 4 = Always or cannot do at all). Higher scores on PDQ-8 represent poor health-related quality of life. Previous psychometric studies found very good internal consistency values. This measure was validated to the Portuguese population within the scope of this research project and showed good internal consistency.
• Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) — Baseline, Week 8, 3-month follow-up
  The HADS is a self-report measure designed to assess the presence and severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms over the past week. This instrument comprises 14 items rated on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (Did not apply to me at all) to 3 (Applied to me very much or Most of the time). Higher scores indicate greater depression and anxiety symptomatology. The HADS presented good internal consistency in the original and in the Portuguese versions.

Trial sites (1)

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