Clinical trials

The goal of this clinical trial is to examine the effects of a telephone-delivered Brief Behavioral Treatment Insomnia (BBTI) versus a Brief Mindfulness Treatment (BMT) on cognitive and sleep outcomes in older adults with HIV. The main questions it aims to answer are: What are the effects of BBTI vs BMT on self-reported and observed sleep outcomes in older adults with HIV and insomnia up to 1-year post-intervention? What are the effects of BBTI vs BMT on self-reported and observed cognitive comes in older adults with HIV and insomnia up to 1-year post-intervention? What is the association between Alzheimer's Disease biomarkers and sleep and cognitive outcomes in older adults with HIV receiving BBTI vs BMT? Participants will: * Complete 4 weeks of telephone-delivered BBTI or BMT * Attend baseline, post-intervention, and 1-year post in-person visits for sleep and cognitive assessments * Have blood collected at all three time points

This pilot study will evaluate the feasibility and potential benefits of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) for university students. Over an eight-week period, 56 students will be randomly assigned to either a SKY breathwork group or a control group engaging in general yoga without breathwork. The SKY group will participate in a three-day in-person retreat, weekly virtual sessions, and independent home practice. The study will assess recruitment, retention, and adherence, as well as changes in physical activity, perceived stress, anxiety, resilience, social connectedness, and cognitive focus. All participants will complete validated wellness questionnaires at baseline and post-intervention. The goal is to determine whether SKY is a feasible, low-risk intervention that may enhance student well-being and inform future research.

Hearing loss is a major public health concern due to its negative association with emotional well-being, cognition, and physical ailments, such as diabetes. Access to audiologists and otolaryngologists in many regions across the US is poor or extremely limited. Rural populations are older, less educated, and have lower household incomes compared to populations in metropolitan areas. Also, with increasing age adults experience greater rates of hearing loss. Fortunately, the 2022 FDA Final Rule for Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids (OTC HAs) could revolutionize assess to hearing aids and hearing healthcare by allowing adults with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss to purchase these devices over the counter, without medical clearance or care from an audiologist. Pharmacies located in rural areas now have the option to provide OTC HAs, something previously not possible. Currently, however, there are no established guidelines for effective provision of these devices in pharmacies located in rural communities. Educating pharmacy technicians to provide basic hearing healthcare related to OTC HAs use could address a critical need and create a new care delivery model to ensure sustainable, long-term access to hearing healthcare. The long-term goal of this study is to create a sustainable interprofessional collaborative between audiologists and pharmacists for the development of a hearing healthcare model that improves access and affordability of care in rural regions across the country. The specific aims are to 1) Determine an effective approach for educating pharmacy technicians for the provision of OTC HAs in rural community pharmacies, and 2) Identify satisfaction of care provided by pharmacy technicians and initial performance with OTC HAs in adults with hearing loss living in rural communities. A stepped wedged clinical trial design will be used to study the effectiveness of a comprehensive educational training program for pharmacy technicians. Technicians from rural Alabama and Mississippi, placed within four different clusters, will participate in a multimodal training program for the purpose of developing basic clinical skills to assist adults with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss. Additionally, adults with hearing loss who receive clinical services from trained pharmacy technicians will be asked to report on the care they received and benefit from their OTC HAs. The central hypotheses are a) that pharmacy technician training will result in greater understanding of hearing healthcare concepts compared to no training, and b) the training will lead to successful provision of basic hearing healthcare to adults with hearing loss in rural communities. The expected outcome of this project will be the establishment of a multimodal education program, leveraging the increased access of OTC HAs, to support those with hearing loss in rural pharmacies across the county. The ability of pharmacy technicians to provide this support will dramatically increase the availability of hearing services in rural communities, which will positively impact the quality of life for those with hearing loss.

Teachers are at notable risk for depression and anxiety. The present study tests an app-based mindfulness intervention for teachers in their final year of training with the goal of preventing the deterioration of their mental health during the transition into the classroom. The project will strengthen the research environment at the University of Alabama and will involve undergraduate research assistants in each step of the research process.

Brain injury is a leading cause of disability in the United States. When survivors of brain injury recover from the initial injury and return home to live in the community, they often face chronic health conditions that warrant nutrition therapy, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and overweight and obesity. Typically, these individuals do not receive nutrition counseling. Thus, the purpose of this clinical trial is to compare changes in diet quality between community-dwelling individuals with a history of brain injury who receive three individualized nutrition therapy sessions versus handouts only. Our research question is: Can nutrition counseling improve dietary intake among this population? Participants will complete a survey, participate in three days of dietary recalls via Zoom or telephone, and receive either three individualized nutrition counseling sessions with a Registered Dietitian or standard of care (handouts). Researchers will compare the diets of the recipients of the nutrition counseling to a control group who receives nutrition handouts to see if nutrition sessions with a Registered Dietitian improve dietary intake.

This project will address quality of care issues associated with hearing loss in adults who have mild-to-moderate hearing loss and who have no access to hearing healthcare. Through the use of three different interventions involving over-the-counter hearing aids, it will lead to options that will increase access and affordability of hearing healthcare for adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss.

This study will inform understanding of how to support emerging adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The investigators will use a theoretically informed and research-based transition support program developed for people with ASD and test how effective it is when delivered by community agencies. Results will provide information on the effectiveness of the program as well as on mechanisms of change and contextual factors that promote or impede implementation.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that commonly persists into adulthood and is associated with significant life impairments. The current study evaluates the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a group-based mindfulness intervention for first-year college students with ADHD. If found to be feasible, acceptable, and efficacious, subsequent research will examine its impact on a larger scale to have a broader public health impact for college students with ADHD.

This study seeks to improve clinical outcomes for an important, growing, and vulnerable population-nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease or related dementias-by testing an evidence-based intervention to improve these residents' sleep. It will also examine the implementation and sustainment of this intervention.

This study aims to test whether aerobic exercise performed after fear extinction learning improves cognitive, physiological, and neural indices of extinction recall in a sample of trauma-exposed men and women with and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants will complete a clinical intake visit (Day 0), followed by a three-day fear conditioning (day 1), fear extinction + activity (day 2), and fear extinction recall (day 3) protocol.