Personalized audio imagery with compact EEG to improve sleep for inpatients with psychosis
The Effectiveness of Individualized Imagery Scripts on Sleep, Psychosis, and Suicidality Among Inpatients With Psychosis: A Randomized Control Pilot Study
This project tests whether individualized audio imagery delivered with compact EEG can improve sleep, psychosis symptoms, and suicidal thoughts in hospitalized patients with psychosis.
Quick facts
| Phase | Not applicable |
|---|---|
| Study type | Interventional |
| Enrollment | 40 (estimated) |
| Ages | 18 Years and up |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston Academic / other |
| Locations | 1 site (Houston, Texas) |
| Trial ID | NCT06194344 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this trial studies
Hospitalized patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders or mood disorders with psychotic features who report sleep problems receive either individualized imagery audio interventions paired with compact EEG monitoring or a control condition. The team uses brief EEG recordings and tailored audio scripts aimed at improving sleep continuity and reducing nightmares, delivered during the inpatient stay. Outcomes include changes in sleep quality, psychotic symptom measures, and suicidality, along with feasibility metrics for delivering the intervention on an inpatient unit. The protocol excludes patients with substance- or medically induced psychosis, major cognitive disorders, implanted devices, or high-frequency safety checks that would interfere with sleep monitoring.
Who should consider this trial
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adult psychiatric inpatients at the site with a primary diagnosis of a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder or mood disorder with psychotic features who have sleep dysfunction (ISI ≥ 8 or weekly nightmares) and capacity to consent.
Not a fit: Patients with substance- or medical-induced psychosis, major neurocognitive or developmental disorders, implanted electronic devices, or those requiring one-to-one or 15-minute safety checks (or rooming with someone on such checks) are excluded and unlikely to benefit from this intervention.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could provide a non-drug way to improve sleep and reduce psychotic symptoms and suicidal thinking in psychiatric inpatients.
How similar studies have performed: Imagery-based interventions and nightmare-focused therapies have shown benefit in other populations, but combining individualized audio imagery with compact EEG monitoring in psychosis inpatients is relatively novel and less well tested.
Eligibility criteria
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * primary diagnoses of schizophrenia spectrum disorder or mood disorder with psychotic features, as determined by the treatment team or record review * capacity to consent to the study as determined by licensed psychologists ( or the primary attending psychiatrist * reported sleep dysfunction which will be determined by a subthreshold or more severe score ≥ 8 on the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and/or report experiencing nightmares at least once a week. Exclusion Criteria: * primary substance- or medical-induced psychosis * intellectual and developmental disabilities * neurodegenerative cognitive disorders * implanted devices (e.g., Pacemakers) * on one-to-one supervision or 15-minute safety checks for suicidality or aggression * patients with roommates that are on 15-minute checks to minimize impact on study participants' awakenings
Where this trial is running
Houston, Texas
- The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston — Houston, Texas, United States (Recruiting)
Study contacts
- Principal investigator: Alia Warner, Ph.D. — The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
- Study coordinator: Alia Warner, Ph.D., ABPP
- Email: Alia.R.Warner@uth.tmc.edu
- Phone: 713-486-2700
How to participate
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Visit the official trial page on ClinicalTrials.gov for the most current contact information and recruitment status.
- Contact the listed study coordinator or principal investigator to request pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.