Clinical Research Directory

Efficacy of a Group-based and Digital Parent Sleep Intervention in HK Preschoolers With NDDs

Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in preschoolers are frequently accompanied by persistent sleep disturbances, such as delayed sleep onset and reduced sleep duration, which exacerbate behavioral problems, impair cognitive development, and increase parental stress. While behavioral parent education effectively improves sleep hygiene, access to in-person clinical programs remains limited by high parent dropout rates. Digital delivery offers a flexible, scalable alternative, yet randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating both face-to-face and self-help mobile app formats specifically for preschoolers across NDDs remain scarce. This study is a three-arm RCT designed to evaluate and compare the efficacy of a parent-based sleep intervention delivered via face-to-face group sessions combined with usual care (UC) versus a digital self-help mobile application combined with UC, against UC alone in Hong Kong preschoolers with NDDs. The study also assesses downstream effects on child daytime behaviors, parental stress, and parent sleep/mood outcomes over a 12-month period.

Playful Physical Activity for Executive Functions and School Readiness in Preschool Children

Executive functions, such as attention, inhibition, working memory, and planning, are important for early learning and school readiness in preschool children. This completed randomized controlled trial evaluated whether an 8-week cognitively enriched playful physical activity program could support executive functions and school readiness in preschool children compared with the regular physical education curriculum. Preschool children were assigned to either a playful physical activity intervention group or a control group receiving conventional physical education. The intervention included structured movement-based games designed to combine physical activity with cognitive challenges, including response inhibition, working memory, planning, rule following, and cooperative problem solving. Outcomes included measures of executive functions and school readiness domains, including mathematical, linguistic, and social competence.