Participate in Clinical Research
Date posted: September 22, 2025
Understanding cognitive difficulties in children with sickle cell anemia
Study description:
This study will compare children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) to controls at two different time points and across four age ranges to assess whether age-related changes in cerebrovascular function and neural activation predict changes in cognitive function (thinking skills), particularly information processing speed. The burden of silent cerebral infarct (SCI) in children with SCA will also be considered.
Benefits to participating:
There are no direct benefits to you for participating in this research.
We will provide reimbursement to help cover out-of-pocket expenses related to study participation.
In recognition of your time and effort, we will also give you a gift card and volunteer certificate for each study visit you complete.
We will provide reimbursement to help cover out-of-pocket expenses related to study participation.
In recognition of your time and effort, we will also give you a gift card and volunteer certificate for each study visit you complete.
Enrolling:
Open, Healthy volunteers
Who can participate:
We are looking for English-speaking participants between 6.0 to 16.0 years old who are in good general health (healthy volunteers) and do not have SCA.
What's involved:
You will be asked to come to SickKids for two (2) in-person study visits, taking place about 2 years apart. Each study visit is expected to take about 6 hours (with breaks) and will involve:
- Taking pictures of your brain with MRI ~ 1 hour.
- Recording how your brain sends messages with magnetoencephalography (MEG) ~ 1 hour.
- Cognitive (thinking) tasks ~ 2 hours
Location:
The Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto, Canada)
Principal investigator:
Kassner, Andrea
Official study title:
1000079545 - Understanding cognitive impairment in children with sickle cell anemia: linking cerebrovascular impairment to brain activations
Interested in participating in this study?
Contact name:
Efe Momodu
Telephone:
416-813-7654 ex.302396
Email:
Additional information
Additional files for resources:
Study posting
| Study title: | Understanding cognitive difficulties in children with sickle cell anemia |
|---|---|
| Study description: | This study will compare children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) to controls at two different time points and across four age ranges to assess whether age-related changes in cerebrovascular function and neural activation predict changes in cognitive function (thinking skills), particularly information processing speed. The burden of silent cerebral infarct (SCI) in children with SCA will also be considered. |
| Enrolling: |
Open
Healthy volunteers
|
| Who can participate: | We are looking for English-speaking participants between 6.0 to 16.0 years old who are in good general health (healthy volunteers) and do not have SCA. |
| What's involved: | You will be asked to come to SickKids for two (2) in-person study visits, taking place about 2 years apart. Each study visit is expected to take about 6 hours (with breaks) and will involve:
|
| Benefits to participating: | There are no direct benefits to you for participating in this research. We will provide reimbursement to help cover out-of-pocket expenses related to study participation. In recognition of your time and effort, we will also give you a gift card and volunteer certificate for each study visit you complete. |
| Location: | The Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto, Canada) |
| Date posted: | 2025-09-22 |
| Principal investigator: | Kassner, Andrea |
| Official study title: | 1000079545 - Understanding cognitive impairment in children with sickle cell anemia: linking cerebrovascular impairment to brain activations |
Interested in participating in this study?
| Contact name: | Efe Momodu |
|---|---|
| Telephone: | 416-813-7654 ex.302396 |
| Email: | efe.momodu@sickkids.ca |
Additional information
| Additional files for resources: |