Not yet recruiting NCT07620249
Effects of Combined Thoracic and Diaphragmatic Breathing on Cognitive and Psycho-Physiological Functions
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: thoracic expansion exercises and slow diaphragmatic breathing, Sham Block.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Diaphragm Pacing. Basic parameters: 18 years — 30 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
Unsure about the terms? Read our patient guide →
Official title
The Effects of Combined Thoracic Expansion Exercises and Slow Diaphragmatic Breathing on Cognitive Function, Brain Activation, Psychological Status, and Head-Shoulder Posture in Healthy Adults
Overview
This study aims to investigate the effects of a combined thoracic expansion exercise (TEE) and slow diaphragmatic breathing (SDB) program on cognitive function, brain activation, psychological status, and head-shoulder posture in healthy young adults.
Interventions
- Other thoracic expansion exercises and slow diaphragmatic breathing
4-week supervised training program, consisting of three 30-minute sessions per week. Thoracic expansion exercises consists of chest wall stretching and mobility drills. Followed by 15 minutes of progressive slow diaphragmatic breathing (4-s inhalation/6-s exhalation). - Other Sham Block
During sham TEE, participants perform comfortable thoracic movements without foam rollers or specific breathing coordination. During sham SDB, they maintain a spontaneous, natural respiratory rhythm in relaxed postures. Crucially, the sham protocol lacks the rhythmic pacing (4:6s), diaphragmatic depth cues, and resistance-based progression required to trigger the neuro-cognitive "respiratory-brain" axis.
Primary outcome measures
- Change from baseline in Working Memory [Time frame: Baseline, Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change from baseline in Inhibitory Control [Time frame: Baseline, Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change from baseline in Mental Set Shifting [Time frame: Baseline, Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change from baseline in Short-Term Memory [Time frame: Baseline, Week 5 (post-intervention)]
Secondary outcome measures (4)
- Change in Heart Rate Variability (HRV) [Time frame: Baseline and Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change in Posture Alignment [Time frame: Baseline and Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change in Psychological status [Time frame: Baseline and Week 5 (post-intervention)]
- Change in Brain Activation [Time frame: Baseline and Week 5 (post-intervention)]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- age between 18 to 30 years with at least a high school education to ensure baseline cognitive task comprehension
- the ability to adhere to verbal instructions
- no regular participation in formal breathing exercise or mindfulness training within the past six months.
Exclusion criteria
- a history of musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, or cerebrovascular diseases which may interfere this study
- history of respiratory disease or recent respiratory infection
- diabetes mellitus with neuropathy, peripheral neuropathy, or other neurological disorders
- major surgery within the past six months
- Current or past major psychiatric disorders or cognitive impairment
- use of medications significantly affecting cerebral hemodynamics or autonomic function (e.g., beta-blockers, vasodilators) within the past 2 weeks
- use of psychotropic medications or substances known to alter cerebral blood flow, neural activation, or autonomic regulation (e.g., antidepressants, antipsychotics, anxiolytics, stimulants, or sedative-hypnotics).
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: Yes
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Single blind
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
Study locations
Center list to be confirmed — check the primary protocol.
Publications
- Shaffer F, Ginsberg JP. An Overview of Heart Rate Variability Metrics and Norms. Front Public Health. 2017 Sep 28;5:258. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2017.00258. eCollection 2017. PMID 29034226
- Kopp B, Lange F, Steinke A. The Reliability of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test in Clinical Practice. Assessment. 2021 Jan;28(1):248-263. doi: 10.1177/1073191119866257. Epub 2019 Aug 2. PMID 31375035
- Verbruggen F, Logan GD. Response inhibition in the stop-signal paradigm. Trends Cogn Sci. 2008 Nov;12(11):418-24. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2008.07.005. PMID 18799345
- Yeung MK, Han YMY. Changes in task performance and frontal cortex activation within and over sessions during the n-back task. Sci Rep. 2023 Feb 27;13(1):3363. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-30552-9. PMID 36849731
- Bianchini E, Warmerdam E, Romijnders R, Hansen C, Pontieri FE, Maetzler W. Cognitive dual-task cost depends on the complexity of the cognitive task, but not on age and disease. Front Neurol. 2022 Oct 3;13:964207. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2022.964207. eCollection 2022. PMID 36313514
- Khng KH, Lee K. The relationship between Stroop and stop-signal measures of inhibition in adolescents: influences from variations in context and measure estimation. PLoS One. 2014 Jul 3;9(7):e101356. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0101356. eCollection 2014. PMID 24992683
- Voss A, Schroeder R, Heitmann A, Peters A, Perz S. Short-term heart rate variability--influence of gender and age in healthy subjects. PLoS One. 2015 Mar 30;10(3):e0118308. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0118308. eCollection 2015. PMID 25822720
- Pinti P, Tachtsidis I, Hamilton A, Hirsch J, Aichelburg C, Gilbert S, Burgess PW. The present and future use of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) for cognitive neuroscience. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2020 Mar;1464(1):5-29. doi: 10.1111/nyas.13948. Epub 2018 Aug 7. PMID 30085354
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07620249 · 202603092RIN