Completed
TREAD

Treatment With Exercise Augmentation for Depression (TREAD)

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What is being tested

SSRI + LD

+ SSRI + PHD
Behavioral
Who is being recruted

Mental Disorders
+2

+ Behavioral Symptoms
+ Depression
From 18 to 70 Years
See all eligibility criteria
How is the trial designed

Treatment Study

Interventional
Study Start: April 2003
See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorUniversity of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Last updated: January 14, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner
Study start date: April 1, 2003Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

Partial response to antidepressant treatment is common in people with MDD and is associated with significant morbidity and reduced quality of life. Pharmacological therapies have been used to augment the effect of antidepressants; however, such therapies are associated with a range of adverse effects. Studies indicate that exercise may be safe and effective in augmenting depression treatment. This study will determine whether exercise can complement selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) therapy in people with MDD who have residual symptoms of depression despite drug treatment. Participants will be randomly assigned to either high frequency exercise or low frequency exercise for 12 weeks. Depression symptoms will be measured weekly. Quality of life and satisfaction with the study will also be measured. Depression scales and self-reports will be used to assess participants.

Official TitleTreatment With Exercise Augmentation for Depression (TREAD) 
NCT00076258
Principal SponsorUniversity of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Last updated: January 14, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
Design Details
126 patients to be enrolledTotal number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.
Treatment Study
These studies test new ways to treat a disease, condition, or health issue. The goal is to see if a new drug, therapy, or approach works better or has fewer side effects than existing options.

How participants are assigned to different groups/arms
In this clinical study, participants are placed into groups randomly, like flipping a coin. This ensures that the study is fair and unbiased, making the results more reliable. By assigning participants by chance, researchers can better compare treatments without external influences.

Other Ways to Assign Participants
Non-randomized allocation: Participants are assigned based on specific factors, such as their medical condition or a doctor's decision.
None (Single-arm trial): If the study has only one group, all participants receive the same treatment, and no allocation is needed.

How treatments are given to participants
Participants are divided into different groups, each receiving a specific treatment at the same time. This helps researchers compare how well different treatments work against each other.

Other Ways to Assign Treatments
Single-group assignment: Everyone gets the same treatment.
Cross-over assignment: Participants switch between treatments during the study.
Factorial assignment: Participants receive different combinations of treatments.
Sequential assignment: Participants receive treatments one after another in a specific order, possibly based on individual responses.
Other assignment: Treatment assignment does not follow a standard or predefined design.

How the effectiveness of the treatment is controlled
In a non placebo-controlled study, no participants receive an inert substance (placebo) to compare outcomes. Instead, all participants receive either the experimental treatment or an alternative treatment (often the Standard of Care). This method allows researchers to compare the effects of the experimental treatment with those of a different active intervention, rather than a placebo.

Other Options
Placebo-Controlled: A placebo is used to compare the effects of the experimental treatment with those of an inert substance, isolating the true treatment effect.

How the interventions assigned to participants is kept confidential
Participants do not know which treatment they are receiving, but researchers do. This helps prevent bias from participants' expectations while still allowing researchers to monitor the study closely.

Other Ways to Mask Information
Open-label: Everyone knows which treatment is being given.
Double-blind: Neither participants nor researchers know which treatment is given.
Triple-blind: Participants, researchers, and outcome assessors do not know which treatment is given.
Quadruple-blind: Participants, researchers, outcome assessors, and care providers all do not know which treatment is given.

Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Conditions
Criteria
Any sexBiological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.
From 18 to 70 YearsRange of ages for which participants are eligible to join.
Healthy volunteers not allowedIf individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.
Conditions
Pathology
Mental Disorders
Behavioral Symptoms
Depression
Depressive Disorder
Mood Disorders
Criteria

Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder * Score of 14 or higher on the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D) * 8 to 12 weeks of SSRI treatment, with at least 6 weeks at adequate doses * Sedentary lifestyle * Physically capable of exercise * Body mass index (BMI) less than 40 kg/m2 * Willing and able to comply with study requirements Exclusion Criteria: * Significant cardiovascular disease or other medical conditions * Uncontrolled hypertension * Abnormal exercise stress test * Hematologic disorders * Comorbid disorders, including depression due to another comorbid condition, psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, eating disorder, or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) * Alcohol and/or substance abuse in the past 6 months * Hospitalization for mental illness within the past year * High suicide risk * Use of psychopharmacological or psychotherapeutic treatment other than SSRIs * Failure to respond to two or more adequate pharmacological treatments during the current depressive episode * Significantly elevated blood lipids * Pregnancy

Study Plan

Find out more about all the medication administered in this study, their detailed description and what they involve.
Treatment Groups
Study Objectives
2 intervention groups 

are designated in this study

This study does not include a placebo group 

Treatment Groups
Group I
Experimental
A low dose aerobic exercise (LD) augmentation intervention to SSRI

Eligible participants who have completed an adequate trial of SSRI monotherapy and all screening visits are randomly assigned to 24 weeks of SSRI augmentation with : a low dose of aerobic exercise (LD) or a public health dose of aerobic exercise (PHD). The acute phase of TREAD consists of the first 12 weeks of exercise augmentation intervention and includes: a) an individualized PHD- or LD aerobic exercise prescription; b) an empiricallybased behavioral intervention, including selfmonitoring tools and an interactive website, designed to maximize exercise adherence and minimize drop-out; and c) exercise instruction and supervised training sessions at The Cooper Institute (CI) as well as self-administered, home-based training sessions.
Group II
Experimental
A public health dose of aerobic exercise (PHD) augmentation intervention to SSRI

Eligible participants who have completed an adequate trial of SSRI monotherapy and all screening visits are randomly assigned to 24 weeks of SSRI augmentation with : a low dose of aerobic exercise (LD) or a public health dose of aerobic exercise (PHD). The acute phase of TREAD consists of the first 12 weeks of exercise augmentation intervention and includes: a) an individualized PHD- or LD aerobic exercise prescription; b) an empiricallybased behavioral intervention, including selfmonitoring tools and an interactive website, designed to maximize exercise adherence and minimize drop-out; and c) exercise instruction and supervised training sessions at The Cooper Institute (CI) as well as self-administered, home-based training sessions.
Study Objectives
Primary Objectives

The primary outcome measure- percentage of participants with remission (score of 12 or less on Inventory for Depressive Symptomatology- Clinician-rated). The change over time in probability of remission (IDS-C30 score ≤ 12) was compared between groups using a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM)41 as implemented in SAS (Proc Glimmix; SAS Institute Inc, Cary, North Carolina).

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.
This study has 1 location
Suspended
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at DallasDallas, United StatesSee the location
CompletedOne Study Center