Stress clinical trials at UCLA
3 research studies open to eligible people
Cortisol and Food Insecurity
open to eligible people ages 18 years and up
This study will use a within-subjects design in a sample of individuals with a range of food insecurity recruited from the Los Angeles community (N = 400; 50% men). These participants will then, in counterbalanced order, be exposed to a gold-standard laboratory stressor and a control condition, one month apart. Moderation analyses will test whether cortisol reactivity to the stressor acts as a modulator of the relationship between high levels of food insecurity and increased hyperpalatable food intake.
Los Angeles 5368361, California 5332921
Healthcare Providers as Trusted Messengers to Increase Receipt of Tax Credits Among Low-income Families
open to eligible people ages 18-99
The purpose of this study is to pilot test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of healthcare provider referrals to a tax filing app within parent-child health programs to test whether such referrals can increase receipt of tax credits among low-income parents. The study will use a single-group, pre/post test design with a sample of approximately 100 women who have a child under 6 years of age. Participants will be recruited from parental-child health programs and clinics in Los Angeles and will complete surveys at baseline, immediately after tax filing season, and six months after tax filing season to assess 1) frequency of tax filing after referral (Feasibility), 2) the acceptability of the tax filing app from the perspective of users (Acceptability), and 3) pre/posttest changes to parent and child health, child development, and healthcare utilization measures for users (preliminary efficacy).
Los Angeles 5368361, California 5332921
Resources, Inspiration, Support and Empowerment (RISE) for Black Pregnant Women
open to eligible females ages 18-65
Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs) encompass a range of mental health disorders that occur during pregnancy and up to one year postpartum. Approximately 13% of women experience PMADs. This rate doubles for those with adverse perinatal outcomes (APO) and triples in Black women. Recent research points to racism as one significant source of these health disparities. Cultural adaptations to improve communication with providers decrease rates of depression in minority patients as well as improve adherence to treatment, insight and alliance. Discrimination stress and worries about experiencing medical consequences are thought to increase systemic inflammation, a mechanism known to drive mental and physical symptoms. Inflammation has been implicated in both PMADs and APO, suggesting a shared underlying etiology. Evidence from our work suggests that inflammation contributes to the pathophysiology of PMADs. The proposed pilot randomized control trial will allow the investigators to build on promising preliminary results and identify whether our culturally relevant mobile Health (mHealth) intervention is effective in improving outcomes among Black pregnant women randomized to the intervention compared to a control group. The culturally relevant modules include building communication and self-advocacy skills and provide a support network. The primary objective of this research is to provide guidance for clinical care of Black women during the perinatal period, with the goal to improve mental health and physical health outcomes. A secondary goal is to examine novel inflammatory signatures that change as a function of the intervention to reduce PMADs in this population. As inflammation may be diagnostic of PMADs, identification of its role may shed light of potential intervention targets and provide critical knowledge to improve women's long-term health. PMAD symptoms will be assessed prospectively in 150 Black pregnant women, half of whom will be randomized to receive the culturally relevant mHealth intervention. The investigators hypothesize that women in the intervention group will have reduced rates of PMADs and APOs, an increase in adherence to mental health treatment and will report increased self-advocacy skills, increased communication with providers, and reduced levels of discrimination related stress. Participants will also have improved biological risk indicators including lower circulating C-reactive protein and a transcription profile of differentially expressed inflammatory genes, marked by a decreased activity of inflammatory transcription factors from blood spots. Given the high burden of both PMADs and APOs among Black mothers and the numerous consequences on maternal and child outcomes, it is imperative that investigators develop and implement effective interventions, and test the biological mechanisms that might drive these effects. This work is interdisciplinary, building on a network of community advocates to implement a novel mHealth intervention informed by real world experiences designed to enhance self-advocacy, reduce stress and prevent adverse outcomes
Los Angeles 5368361, California 5332921
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