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Active, Not Recruiting

NCT Number: NCT06361342

Smartphones Aggravating Anxiety Symptoms

The goal of this study is to assess if excessive use of smartphone apps of social media can impact a person's mental health. The study is aimed at improving the usage of smartphones which might help improve the mental health of patients. The goal is not to discourage the use of smartphones but instead to utilize smartphones in a way that they do not impact lives.

Active, Not Recruiting

This study is active but is not currently recruiting participants.

Key information

Conditions

Anxiety Anxiety Disorders Mental Disorders

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Mayo Clinic Minnesota

Rochester, Minnesota, 55905, United States

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

  • For patients aged 18 years or older experiencing mild symptoms of anxiety or depression and who have a GAD-7 score 5 and above.
  • Patient should have smart phone and should be using Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok, and Pinterest social media apps.
  • Patients should have email access.

Exclusion criteria

  • Any patient who uses a smartphone for tracking glucose for diabetes management, heart rate, or any chronic illness which is being managed through a smartphone app.
  • Any patient who uses more than one personal smartphone
  • Any patient who is a suicide risk as per PHQ-9 score, current recreational drug usage, or alcohol abuse.
  • Any patient who has suicidal ideation as per PHQ-9 assessment before or during the study period will be excluded, (all patients will be monitored for suicidal ideation by PHQ-9 scoring method at day 1, week 6, and week 12, but it is the responsibility of the patient to inform the study team if they have developed any suicidal ideation throughout the study period).
  • Patients with activated POA (Power of Attorney - Healthcare), diagnosis of mental retardation or current disability due to any psychiatric disorder or severe depression with a high risk of suicide should be excluded.
  • Any patient currently undergoing ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) for severe depression.
  • Any patient taking prescribed SSRIs/SNRIs, with a change and not taking them continuously in last 30 days (not a new diagnosis of anxiety). If change they will be excluded.

Treatment and study plan

General decrease in smartphone use

Behavioral

Subjects will decrease their time on smartphone in general.

Avoiding Social Media Apps

Behavioral

Subjects will avoid use of social media apps on the smartphone which includes Twitter, Facebook, Tik Tok, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Primary outcomes

  1. Change in anxiety

    Time frame: Day 1, 12 weeks

    Measured using the General Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD 7) scale to assess severity of generalized anxiety disorder. Scoring is calculated by assigning scores of 0, 1, 2, and 3 to the response categories, respectively, of "not at all," "several days," "more than half the days," and "nearly every day." Total score for the seven items ranges from 0 to 21 where 0 is no anxiety, 1-4 is minimal anxiety, 5-9 is mild anxiety, 10-14 is moderate anxiety, and 15-21 is severe anxiety.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Change in depression

    Time frame: Day 1, 12 weeks

    Measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire 9-item (PHQ-9) scale used to assess severity of depression. Scoring is calculated by assigning scores of 0, 1, 2, and 3 to the response categories, respectively, of "not at all," "several days," "more than half the days," and "nearly every day." Total score for the seven items ranges from 0 to 27 where 0 is no depression, 1-4 is minimal depression, 5-9 is mild depression, 10-14 is moderate depression, and 15-19 is moderately severe depression and 20-27 severe depression.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Mayo Clinic

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Smartphones Aggravating Anxiety Symptoms: Experimental Study From Southeastern

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Apr 11, 2024
Registry last updated
Jan 14, 2026

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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