Actively Recruiting
Bright Light Therapy for OSA
Led by VA Office of Research and Development · Updated on 2026-01-09
60
Participants Needed
1
Research Sites
165 weeks
Total Duration
On this page
AI-Summary
What this Trial Is About
Persistent daytime symptoms of sleepiness in individuals with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) who are using Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) are associated with adverse long term medical and functional outcomes. Supplementary exposure to bright light has beneficial effects on sleep quality and daytime vigilance in healthy individuals and it has been increasingly applied in a variety of sleep and neuropsychiatric conditions. This study will explore the role of Bright Light Therapy (BLT), a well-established non-pharmacological intervention for circadian disturbances, for the treatment of residual daytime symptoms of OSA which do not respond to CPAP. BLT will be delivered via therapy glasses in a cross-over design, where each participant will be exposed to active treatment and sham treatment (4 weeks in each arm) in a randomized order. The hypothesis is that participants will demonstrate improvements in the variables of interest during the four-week active treatment portion of the eight-week crossover study, compared to the four-week sham treatment portion.
CONDITIONS
Official Title
Bright Light Therapy for OSA
Who Can Participate
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if you...
- Documented diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea
- Currently using CPAP or BiPAP for at least 3 months
- Documented adherence to CPAP/BiPAP (wearing >6 hours per night on at least 75% of nights)
- Adequate control of sleep apnea (AHI of 10 or less while on CPAP)
- Excessive residual daytime sleepiness with Epworth sleepiness score over 10
- If taking alertness medications, stable dose for at least one month before study and no dose changes during participation
- No use of bright light therapy in the month prior to study enrollment
You will not qualify if you...
- Currently working shift work
- Travel across time zones in the past month
- Diagnosis of narcolepsy
- Regular use of hypnotic medications
- Decompensated congestive heart failure
- Primary central sleep apnea requiring oxygen therapy via nasal cannula
- Poorly controlled diabetes (hemoglobin A1c over 8%)
- Active substance use disorder
- Dementia
- Untreated bipolar disorder (stable treated bipolar disorder allowed)
- Macular degeneration or recent lasik surgery within 3 months
- Legally blind
- Taking medications causing photosensitivity to blue-green light
- Currently using bright light therapy
AI-Screening
AI-Powered Screening
Complete this quick 3-step screening to check your eligibility
Trial Site Locations
Total: 1 location
1
VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System University Drive Division, Pittsburgh, PA
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15240
Actively Recruiting
Research Team
I
Isabella Soreca, MD
CONTACT
L
L. A Pisarov
CONTACT
How is the study designed?
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Masking
SINGLE
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Model
CROSSOVER
Primary Purpose
TREATMENT
Number of Arms
2
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