A Randomised Control Trial Of Non-specific Clinical Management Versus CBT In Chronic Anorexia Nervosa
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$555,843.00
Summary
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious mental illness that usually starts in adolescence and often runs a chronic course. With an estimated prevalence rate between 0.5% and 3.7% of women, and up to 50% remaining chronically ill, the illness poses a disproportionate burden on health and social services. AN has inpatient costs alone that exceed that for schizophrenia. Chronic AN has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Chronic AN patients are known for their ambivalence about engaging in ....Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious mental illness that usually starts in adolescence and often runs a chronic course. With an estimated prevalence rate between 0.5% and 3.7% of women, and up to 50% remaining chronically ill, the illness poses a disproportionate burden on health and social services. AN has inpatient costs alone that exceed that for schizophrenia. Chronic AN has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Chronic AN patients are known for their ambivalence about engaging in treatment and poor motivation to change their eating disorder behaviours. They often fail to respond to traditional treatments and develop a history of negative treatment experiences and repeated treatment failures. A new approach is needed to reduce both the personal suffering and the burden of the illness on social and medical services. To date, there has been little scientific investigation into the development of specific treatment for those patients with chronic AN. This study will trial a recently manualised therapy - non-specific supportive clinical management - which initial evidence suggests may hold promise for chronic AN because it offers a more indirect, motivationally-matched approach. This treatment will be compared to the establishment therapy Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. Patients will be randomly allocated to one of the two treatment conditions and will receive 40 sessions over 12 months. They will be thoroughly assessed prior to during and after they have completed treatment and followed up for 6 months. This is the worlds first trial of a psychological treatment for chronic AN; it is hoped the study will establish an effective treatment for this debilitating and expensive illness. Further, as the project aims to explore the core, but often over-looked, feature of AN - poor motivation for recovery - it will also be in a position to shed light on the deep psychological processes that maintain this illness.Read moreRead less
The Healthy Brain Project: A Prospective Cohort Study To Examine How Later-life University Education May Affect The Trajectory Of Ageing-related Cognitive Decline
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,085,742.00
Summary
Previous research has indicated that higher levels of education in early adulthood are associated with lower risk for dementia in older adults. This world-first project will examine if older adults who undertake university education have reduced rates of age-related cognitive decline than older adults who do not undertake further education. This would support the notion that boosting cognitive reserve in later life is protective against age- and disease-related neurodegenerative change.
The Construction And Validation Of The Assessment Of Mental Health Related Quality Of Life (PsyQoL) Instrument
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$539,450.00
Summary
Mental Health is one of the national health priority areas as well as one of the largest contributors to burden of disease. WHO projections suggest that by 2020 the burden of depression alone will be second only to cardiovascular disease. New treatments for mental disorders are being developed which must be evaluated. Current research methods do not allow an accurate comparison of the cost effectiveness of these therapies with the cost effectiveness of other medical services as this requires the ....Mental Health is one of the national health priority areas as well as one of the largest contributors to burden of disease. WHO projections suggest that by 2020 the burden of depression alone will be second only to cardiovascular disease. New treatments for mental disorders are being developed which must be evaluated. Current research methods do not allow an accurate comparison of the cost effectiveness of these therapies with the cost effectiveness of other medical services as this requires the measurement of 'utility' or 'quality of life'. The small number of 'generic' 'quality of life instruments' developed to date vary significantly in their 'sensitivity' to different illnesses-their ability to detect change-and none is very sensitive to changes in mental health states. The present project is to overcome this deficit. This will be achieved by refining and expanding an instrument developed in Australia, the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL) instrument. This is the only instrument to date which was both constructed using correct psychometric principles of instrument construction and which describes health states in terms of the effect upon a patient's ability to function in a social environment. The new instrument called the PsyQoL will increase instrument sensitivity by including a mental health 'module' to the existing instrument and revising existing items. The methods used will include several methodological innovations in the description of health states and the derivation of utility scores. The project will include a large scale 'validation' study which will include the construction of population 'norms' and also the creation of 'exchange rates' between the PsyQoL and other instrument scores. The significance of the project is that the PsyQoL will allow valid and reliable measurement of health states in a way that creates a 'level playing field' between mental and other health related interventions.Read moreRead less
Developing An Australian Valuation For The EQ-5D-5L Quality Of Life Instrument
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$348,357.00
Summary
In the assessment of gains resulting from a health technology, it is standard to consider both mortality and quality of life effects. This project explores how Australians value different components of quality of life. To do this, we are running an online survey called a discrete choice experiment, and analysing the data using a range of cutting-edge econometric techniques. This will allow policy-makers to better reflect people's preferences when making decisions about new technologies.
Predictors And Correlates Of Health-related Quality Of Life And Morbidity In Overweight/obese Adolescents: Cohort Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$512,525.00
Summary
There is now no doubting the size and long-term risks to health of the childhood obesity epidemic. However, very little research has examined at population level its immediate consequences for mental health and physical functioning, what pathways confer risk and protection for these consequences, and their likely healthcare consequences. This study will utilise an existing cohort of approximately 1500 Victorian adolescents followed since childhood to examine neglected aspects of the genesis and ....There is now no doubting the size and long-term risks to health of the childhood obesity epidemic. However, very little research has examined at population level its immediate consequences for mental health and physical functioning, what pathways confer risk and protection for these consequences, and their likely healthcare consequences. This study will utilise an existing cohort of approximately 1500 Victorian adolescents followed since childhood to examine neglected aspects of the genesis and impacts of overweight and obesity. The Health of Young Victorians Study was originally assembled in 1997 when the children were in Grades Prep-3. In addition to information on putative risk and protective factors for overweight-obesity and direct measures of height and weight, it is unique in having collected data on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) since children were first recruited during the early primary school years. Eight years after the first wave, the children will be adolescents in Grades 8-11. This third wave will retain a focus on HRQoL. Innovations include study of potential emotional, behavioural and physical consequences of childhood obesity that may in turn affect the natural history of obesity. This large, population-based longitudinal study will redress neglected aspects of child and adolescent overweight-obesity specifically identified in 2003 by the NH and MRC. As well as establishing whether a range of common problems are related to overweight-obesity, it will be able to shed light on mechanisms of adverse outcomes associated with adolescent overweight-obesity, and study protective factors predicting remitting overweight from childhood to adolescence that may inform preventive activities. The study will make an international contribution to knowledge about pathways, prevalence and preventive opportunities for child and adolescent overweight-obesity.Read moreRead less
A Phase III Trial Comparing Adjuvant Versus Salvage Radiotherapy For High Risk Patients Post Radical Prostatectomy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$819,138.00
Summary
About half of all patients Treated with an operation to remove their prostate cancer have a high chance of the cancer coming back. Giving immediate radiotherapy to all patients will improve cure rates but does not benefit all men and can cause significant side effects. This study explores whether it is safe to wait and only give radiotherapy when there is a rising PSA after surgery indicating active cancer. A total of 470 men from Australasia will enter this study comparing the two approaches.
Rolling It Out: Targeted Translation Intervention To Improve Driving Cessation Outcomes For People With Dementia Across Metropolitan And Regional Areas
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$594,644.00
Summary
This research addresses social, emotional and practical challenges that people with dementia face in dealing with stopping driving. A resource that provides practical and emotional support and education around stopping driving is required in primary care settings to improve quality of life of people with dementia and their carers, and support health professionals who monitor driving issues. This program will translate a research-based resource into GP clinics and community services in Australia.
PREDICT Outcomes To Inform Services For Children With Cerebral Palsy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$802,673.00
Summary
Every 15 hours a new child is born with Cerebral Palsy (CP). CP is due to an early static brain injury however physical problems can progress. Our PREDICT program will examine early measures of brain structure and motor development combined with growth, nutrition, physical activity, cognition, communication, participation, quality of life outcomes at 8 years and relate these to the costs of health care. These prediction models will inform the timing of early interventions, appropriate service pr ....Every 15 hours a new child is born with Cerebral Palsy (CP). CP is due to an early static brain injury however physical problems can progress. Our PREDICT program will examine early measures of brain structure and motor development combined with growth, nutrition, physical activity, cognition, communication, participation, quality of life outcomes at 8 years and relate these to the costs of health care. These prediction models will inform the timing of early interventions, appropriate service provision and projected costs of health care.Read moreRead less
Addressing Evidence Gaps And Developing A Novel Treatment To Reduce The Burden Of Post-traumatic Knee Osteoarthritis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$645,205.00
Summary
Arthritis caused by knee injury has a devastating personal and economic impact. Research is needed to develop strategies to prevent arthritis and improve outcomes for people living with arthritis. This research will improve treatment of knee injury to reduce arthritis risk, understand why some people are more likely to get knee arthritis, and develop a new treatment to improve outcomes for people living with knee arthritis. A clinical trial will determine if this treatment achieves this aim.
Music Therapy Interventions For Dementia: Cluster Randomised Control Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,014,430.00
Summary
Music therapy interventions are increasingly used in aged care facilities across Australia, however Australian-based research that tests its effectiveness is scarce. In this study, we track the impact of group music therapy and group singing on levels of depression, cognitive function, quality of life, and other symptoms of dementia. By providing music therapy programs across sites in Victoria, NSW and Queensland, we will also evaluate the cost effectiveness of the intervention.