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Completed

NCT Number: NCT06668675

Digital Cardiovascular Health Promotion Among School-going Adolescents in Nepal

The goal of this HRIDAYA project is to see if a digital mobile game can improve knowledge about heart disease among school-going adolescents. The researchers will divide adolescents of public and private schools into two groups. Each group will contain adolescents from both the school types. Knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of adolescents will be tested before intervention. One group will receive a mobile game and the other will not receive the game.

After two weeks of game play, the KAP of the adolescents will be tested again. The changes in KAP before and after playing the game in the two groups will be compared.

The participants will need to:

* Give pretest of KAP regarding CVD * Download the game in their mobile devices. * Install the game * Play the game for 2 weeks * Give post test of KAP regarding CVD

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Key information

Conditions

Heart Disease Cardiovascular Diseases Heart Diseases

Age range

13 year–15 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Kathmandu Medical College

Kathmandu, Bagmati, 44600, Nepal

About this study

With the rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs), cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevalence is increasing in Nepal. CVD risk factors (smoking, harmful use of alcohol, insufficient intake of fruits and vegetables, obesity, hypertension, diabetes and dyslipidemia) are common among adolescents. Despite high prevalence, the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding CVD among adolescents is poor. Since CVDs often begin with modifiable risk behaviors established during adolescence which manifest later, it becomes utmost important to target this population. To tackle this growing problem, a possible way to educate the children on heart-health at the community level is through schools.

The overall aim of this HRIDAYA project is to develop a cardiovascular health education and pilot it among school-going adolescents in Nepal to improve their cardiovascular health awareness.

This HRIDAYA project is a school based parallel trial with digital health promotion intervention aimed at adolescents of grades 8-10 in the public and private schools of Jhaukhel and Duwakot Health Demographic Surveillance Site (JD-HDSS). The JD-HDSS consists of two wards Jhaukhel and Duwakot of Bhaktapur district, 13 kms away from Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.

A baseline study was carried out to identify knowledge gaps regarding cardiovascular disease (CVDs) among adolescents. These gaps defined the learning goals of the game. Then a paper game prototype was developed in collaboration with the School of Informatics, University of Skövde, Sweden and tested among 10 adolescents. The knowledge gaps combined with the visual recognition and preferences from the paper game prototype testing were mapped into the serious game mechanics resulting in a digital serious game called 'Happy Heart'.

For the intervention, adolescents studying in grades 8-10 from one public and two private schools will be selected purposively for each of the intervention and control arm of the study. Pre-intervention testing of the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) will be done before the intervention. The adolescents in the intervention arm will receive a link to download the game in their mobile devices. They will play the game for 2 weeks. A post intervention test will again be done regarding the KAP for CVDs.

The data will be entered and analyzed in SPSS version 28. The change in knowledge (primary outcome), attitude and practice (secondary outcome) in the intervention and control group will be identified using the difference in difference analysis.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Adolescents studying in grades 8-10 in public and private schools in JD-HDSS.

Exclusion criteria

  • Adolescents absent during data collection period

Treatment and study plan

A serious game known as the 'Happy Heart' will be used as the intervention.

Other

The serious game known as 'Happy Heart' is a mobile game used for educational purpose in addition to entertainment. It focuses on healthy habits for the heart and is aimed at improving knowledge on diet and physical activity among school-going adolescents.

The game is developed in collaboration with the game development team from the School of Informatics, University of Skövde and the health team from Kathmandu Medical College, Nepal.

Primary outcomes

  1. Knowledge score

    Time frame: 2 months

    The knowledge of the adolescents will be measured using the knowledge part of the 'Knowledge, attitude and practice of cardiovascular disease among school-going adolescents' questionnaire before and after the serious game is administered. The total knowledge score obtained by the adolescents will be converted into percentage. So the minimum score is 0% and maximum score is 100%. Higher the percent score, better will be the knowledge.

    The primary outcome is the change in knowledge score of adolescents before and after playing the serious game 'Happy Heart'.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Attitude score

    Time frame: 2 months

    The attitude of the adolescents will be measured using the 5 point Likert scale in the attitude part of the 'Knowledge, attitude and practice of cardiovascular disease among school-going adolescents' questionnaire before and after the serious game is administered. The total score obtained by the adolescents in attitude will be converted into percentage. So the minimum score is 0% and maximum score is 100%. Higher the percent score, better will be the attitude.

    So, the secondary outcome is the change in attitude score of adolescents before and after playing the serious game 'Happy Heart'.

Other outcomes

  1. Practice score

    Time frame: 2 months

    The practice of the adolescents will be measured using the practice part of the 'Knowledge, attitude and practice of cardiovascular disease among school-going adolescents' questionnaire before and after the serious game is administered. The practice will be scored based on the American Heart Association guidelines. These included if the adolescents ate five servings of fruits and vegetables, practiced 60 minutes of physical activity daily and did not smoke or drink.

    The total score obtained by the adolescents in practice will be converted into percentage. So the minimum score is 0% and maximum score is 100%. Higher the score better will be the practice.

    Another secondary outcome is the change in practice score of adolescents before and after playing the serious game 'Happy Heart'.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Kathmandu Medical College and Teaching Hospital

Other

Collaborators

  • University of Skövde

Registry information

Official study title

Digital Intervention for School-going Adolescents: A Serious Games Approach for Cardiovascular Health Promotion in Nepal

Acronym: HRIDAYA

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2023
Study completion
2023
First posted
Oct 31, 2024
Registry last updated
Oct 31, 2024

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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