Reducing chronic breathlessness in adults by following a self-guided, internet-based supportive intervention
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN13121835 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN13121835 |
| ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT) | NCT06326957 |
| Clinical Trials Information System (CTIS) | Nil known |
| Integrated Research Application System (IRAS) | 334979 |
| Protocol serial number | V1 15/01/2024, CPMS 60966, IRAS 334979 |
| Sponsor | King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust |
| Funder | National Institute for Health and Care Research |
- Submission date
- 04/04/2024
- Registration date
- 15/04/2024
- Last edited
- 27/06/2025
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Respiratory
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
Some health conditions make breathing difficult and uncomfortable. When this happens every day, it is called chronic breathlessness. Over 3 million people living with heart and lung disease have chronic breathlessness in the UK. Breathlessness is very difficult for patients themselves and their families, resulting in disability and feelings of fear, distress, and isolation. Due to a lack of supportive breathlessness services many patients frequently attend hospital Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments seeking help. Given the ongoing challenges faced by the NHS in the UK, such as long waiting times, staff shortages, and increased demand for services because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an urgent need to develop new ways to support those living with chronic breathlessness. One potential solution is to offer support online, as it is estimated that 7 out of every 10 people with chronic breathlessness in the UK are internet users. With the help of patients and NIHR funding the research team led by Dr Charles Reilly, developed an online breathlessness supportive website called SELF-BREATHE. SELF-BREATHE provides information and self-management tools such as breathing exercises, that patients can do at home. SELF-BREATHE has been tested as part of its development. SELF-BREATHE is acceptable and valued by patients. However, it is unknown whether SELF-BREATHE improves patients' breathlessness and their lives. This study aims to test if using SELF-BREATHE for six weeks improves patients' breathlessness, their quality of life and whether SELF-BREATHE should be offered within the NHS and see if patients opt to continue to use SELF-BREATHE after six weeks and what benefits this may have for patients.
Who can participate?
People aged 18 years old and over living with chronic breathlessness
What does the study involve?
Each person will be randomly chosen by a computer to continue with their usual care or their usual care plus access to SELF-BREATHE. All study participants will complete questionnaires at the start of the study, thereafter at seven and twelve weeks after randomisation. These questionnaires will ask patients about their breathlessness and its effect on their lives and planned and unplanned hospital visits. At the end of the study, we will compare answers to these questionnaires between the two groups at seven and 12 weeks. This will inform the team if SELF-BREATHE improved patients' breathlessness and reduced their need for unplanned hospital visits e.g., A&E attendances due to breathlessness.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
The possible benefits for those allocated to the intervention arm using SELF-BREATHE include help with their breathlessness, but the research team cannot promise that this will happen. The purpose of the study is to see if there are any benefits to using SELF-BREATHE. Importantly, the information, the research team get from this study will help improve the future treatment of people with chronic breathlessness. The main benefit of taking part in this study for an individual is to help improve the care for future patients. Involvement in this study will help the study team answer the question: does using SELF-BREATHE for 6 weeks improve people's breathlessness?
For those that agree to take part in this study, there will be additional time involved to follow the SELF-BREATHE programme (logging on 2-3 times a week over six weeks) if allocated to the SELF-BREATHE arm of the study and complete the research questionnaires. For all participants in the study, this will involve three research assessments over 12 weeks. To minimise inconvenience, these research assessments will be scheduled at a time most convenient for participants.
Where is the study run from?
King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
December 2023 to July 2028
Who is funding the study?
National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)
Who is the main contact?
Dr Charles Reilly, charles.reilly@nhs.net
Contact information
Public, Scientific, Principal investigator
King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Department of Physiotherapy
4th Floor Hambleden Wing
Denmark Hill
London
SE5 9RS
United Kingdom
 ORCID ID |
0000-0003-2520-2859 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +44 (0)20 3299 8062, (0)207 848 5588 |
| charles.reilly@nhs.net |
Study information
| Primary study design | Interventional |
|---|---|
| Study design | Statistician blind multicentre parallel-group two-arm randomized controlled trial |
| Secondary study design | Randomised controlled trial |
| Participant information sheet | 45279_PIS_V1.0_15Jan2024.pdf |
| Scientific title | A multicentre, randomised controlled trial comparing usual NHS care to a self-guided internet-based intervention (SELF-BREATHE) plus usual NHS care to reduce breathlessness in adults living with chronic breathlessness |
| Study acronym | mRCT SELF-BREATHE |
| Study objectives | We hypothesise that using SELF-BREATHE plus usual NHS care (intervention) for six weeks will reduce worst breathlessness over the last 24 hours, quantified on 0-10 numerical rating scale (NRS) in patients living with chronic breathlessness compared to those receiving usual NHS care (Control) |
| Ethics approval(s) |
Approved 07/03/2024, London – Bromley Research Ethics Committee (Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Bristol Research Ethics Committee Centre, London, BS1 6PN, United Kingdom; +44 (0)207 104 8118; bromley.rec@hra.nhs.uk), ref: 24/LO/0142 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Adults living with chronic breathlessness due to malignant and non-malignant diseases |
| Intervention | Intervention arm: SELF-BREATHE SELF-BREATHE is a complex, theoretically informed intervention developed with patients following the IDEAS and MRC frameworks. Participants allocated to the intervention group (SELF-BREATHE) will continue to receive their usual NHS care and they will also be given a username and password, which provides unlimited access to SELF-BREATHE. SELF-BREATHE has seven core components, delivered via multi-model media i.e., animations, written text, audio files, pictures, and instructional videos. 1. Patient education about chronic breathlessness and self-management. 2. Self-monitoring of breathlessness; breathlessness severity, distress due to breathlessness, and the impact of breathlessness on life, with real-time algorithm-based automated feedback. 3. Breathing exercises and techniques to improve breathlessness self-management e.g., breathing control exercises, pursed-lipped breathing, and body positions to relieve breathlessness. 4. Breathlessness self-management planning: patients can formulate a personalised breathlessness crisis plan, which will include the breathlessness management techniques used at points of breathlessness crisis e.g., breathing control. 5. Improving physical activity: advice on how to increase daily activity levels, self-directed and self-monitored home exercise programme of bed, chair and standing-based exercises. 6. Personalised Goal Setting: self-guided support for patients to set personalised goals and track achievement and success. 7. Ask the expert: inbuilt messaging service where patients can ask a question or get advice about any specific aspect of SELF-BREATHE (minimal response time of 48 hours). |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure(s) |
Patient-rated intensity of worst breathlessness over the previous 24 hours measured using a validated 11-point (0-10) Numerical Rating Scale (NRS), where 0 = no breathlessness, and 10 = worst imaginable breathlessness at baseline (T1), 7 weeks (T2) and 12 weeks (T3) post-randomisation |
| Key secondary outcome measure(s) |
The following secondary outcome measures are assessed at baseline (T1), 7 weeks (T2) and 12 weeks (T3) post-randomisation: |
| Completion date | 31/07/2028 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Patient |
|---|---|
| Age group | Mixed |
| Lower age limit | 18 Years |
| Upper age limit | 110 Years |
| Sex | All |
| Target sample size at registration | 246 |
| Key inclusion criteria | 1. Adults ≥ 18 years of age 2. Chronic Breathlessness at rest and/or exertion 3. Chronic Breathlessness (CB) defined as breathlessness that persists (> 3 months) despite pharmacological treatment of the underlying disease including, but not limited to; cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), bronchiectasis, chronic fibrotic lung disease following SARS-CoV2 infection 4. Medical Research Council (MRC) dyspnea score ≥ 2 (MRC 2= short of breath when hurrying on the level or walking up a slight hill 5. Access to a computer, tablet, or smartphone with internet access 6. Able to provide informed consent |
| Key exclusion criteria | 1. Breathlessness of unknown cause 2. Primary diagnosis of chronic hyperventilation syndrome 3. Currently participating in a rehabilitation programme e.g., pulmonary/cardiac rehabilitation (patients that have completed PR > 4 weeks will be eligible). |
| Date of first enrolment | 05/07/2024 |
| Date of final enrolment | 30/11/2027 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- United Kingdom
- England
Study participating centres
London
SE5 9RS
United Kingdom
Hermitage Lane
Maidstone
ME16 9QQ
United Kingdom
Warrington Road
Prescot
L35 5DR
United Kingdom
Manchester
M13 9WL
United Kingdom
Newtown Road
Carlisle
CA2 7HY
United Kingdom
Hucknall Road
Nottingham
NG5 1PB
United Kingdom
Lydeard House
Musgrove Park Hospital
Taunton
TA1 5DA
United Kingdom
Lyndhurst Road
Worthing
BN11 2DH
United Kingdom
Results and Publications
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
|---|---|
| IPD sharing plan summary | Data sharing statement to be made available at a later date |
| IPD sharing plan | The data-sharing plans for the current study are unknown and will be made available at a later date |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participant information sheet | version 1.0 | 15/01/2024 | 10/04/2024 | No | Yes |
| Participant information sheet | Participant information sheet | 11/11/2025 | 11/11/2025 | No | Yes |
Additional files
- 45279_PIS_V1.0_15Jan2024.pdf
- Participant information sheet
Editorial Notes
27/06/2025: The study participating centres were updated to add Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Manchester University Hospital NHS Ft (hq), North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Ft, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust - City Campus, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust.
21/06/2024: The recruitment start date was changed from 20/06/2024 to 05/07/2024.
10/05/2024: The recruitment start date was changed from 20/05/2024 to 20/06/2024.
05/04/2024: Study's existence confirmed by the London - Bromley Research Ethics Committee.
