ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT07140952Updated Aug 26, 2025

Fueling Strong Hearts for a Strong South Carolina

An interventional study of Strong SC and StrongPeople StrongHearts in Stroke and Obesity &Amp; Overweight, sponsored by Clemson University. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 45 Years to 80 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-08-26.

Sponsored by Clemson University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Started Jun 2025; still recruiting 1 year 4 months later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
50
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
45 Years to 80 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

South Carolina is home to many survivors of stroke. After leaving the hospital and finishing therapies, stroke survivors often do not have the supports they need to fully recover. Many live with problems for a long time after their stroke, such as trouble walking or doing everyday tasks like cleaning, grocery shopping, or cooking. Research suggests that healthy habits, like moving more, eating well, and being at a healthy weight, can improve most of these disabilities. These habits can be hard to form alone though, especially in rural areas that may not have many healthy foods or places to exercise. Research-based programs can help people form healthy habits. These programs have not been tested in stroke survivors who have different needs though. The goal of this research project is to test StrongPeople StrongHearts, a health program, to see if it helps stroke survivors in South Carolina make better choices for their health and improve their quality of life. The program will be delivered online so that survivors in rural areas can be in the program. One group will also receive a weekly grocery box tailored to their needs to improve access to healthy foods. This study could help increase access to research-based programs for stroke survivors who do not have the supports they did soon after their stroke. This step is important for stroke survivors' long-term health and quality of life, the mission of the American Heart Association.

Read the detailed description

This study will be conducted virtually throughout the Pee Dee and Low Country regions of South Carolina. The purpose of this project is to determine the extent to which Strong SC, an intervention combining StrongPeople StrongHearts with a supplemental medically tailored grocery (MTG) program, impacts lifestyle behaviors and health outcomes of community-dwelling chronic stroke survivors with obesity, compared to the conventional StrongPeople StrongHearts intervention. A total of 50 community-dwelling chronic stroke survivors with overweight or obesity will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1) StrongPeople StrongHearts + supplemental MTG program (Strong SC); 2) the conventional StrongPeople StrongHearts program (SPSH); or 3) a wait-list control (CON). SPSH participants will have access to the supplemental MTG program following completion of the 12-week intervention and 12-week follow-up period, and CON participants will be enrolled in the Strong SC intervention following the 12-week intervention and 12-week follow-up period. Anthropometric measures, physical activity, physical and psychosocial function, diet quality, and food security (Aim 1) outcome measures will be assessed prior to the intervention (baseline), at 12 weeks (post), and at 24 weeks (follow-up). The RE-AIM (Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance) and Framework for Reporting Adaptations and Modifications-Expanded (FRAME) frameworks will be utilized to evaluate implementation outcomes and systematic adaptations to StrongPeople StrongHearts (Aim 2). Any StrongPeople StrongHearts program adaptations required, systematically made, and documented will apply to both the Strong SC and SPSH intervention groups.

02

Conditions studied

  • Stroke
  • Obesity &Amp; Overweight

Keywords

  • Lifestyle Management
  • Virtual Intervention
03

In context

Stroke

8,255 studies on the registry are indexed under Stroke; 2,056 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 50 is close to the median of 49 across 6,024 interventional studies indexed under Stroke.

Browse Stroke studies →

Lead sponsor

Clemson University is the lead sponsor of 18 studies on the registry; 4 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
45 Years to 80 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  1. age 45-80 years;
  2. a diagnosis of stroke at least 6 months prior;
  3. > 25 kg/m2;
  4. ability to follow instructions, complete training, and to communicate exertion, pain, and distress;
  5. access to computer or smart phone with internet to participate in a virtual intervention; and
  6. provision of . Individuals who meet inclusion criteria must complete the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PARQ) and be cleared for participation by a study exercise physiologist

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. unstable cardiac arrhythmias, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, severe aortic stenosis, angina or dyspnea at rest or during ADL's;
  2. Alzheimer's or other dementias;
  3. \<1 yr;
  4. history of DVT or pulmonary embolism within 6 months;
  5. severe hypertension with systolic >200 mmHg and diastolic >110 mmHg at rest;
  6. history of seizures or currently prescribed anti-seizure medications; or
  7. current enrollment in a rehabilitation trial to enhance physical or psychosocial recovery
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(3)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

BMI (body mass index)

Weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Example: 70 kg and 1.75 m gives 70 ÷ (1.75 × 1.75) ≈ 22.9.

What counts as overweight or obesity differs between countries (some use lower cut-offs), so go by the range the study states.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

Life expectancy

The study doctor’s estimate of how long someone is likely to live. Criteria use it so that people can stay in the study long enough for it to answer its question.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
50 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    StrongSC

    The Strong SC arm combines the StrongPeople StrongHearts program with a supplemental medically tailored grocery (MTG) program.

    Behavioral: Strong SC

  • Experimental
    StrongPeople StrongHearts

    The StrongPeople StrongHearts arm follows the standard 12-week StrongPeople StrongHearts group program, systematically adapted to the needs and abilities of community-dwelling, chronic stroke survivors.

    Behavioral: StrongPeople StrongHearts

  • No intervention
    Control

    No intervention will be administered during the wait-list control period.

Interventions

  • BehavioralStrong SC

    The Strong SC intervention combines the StrongPeople StrongHearts program with a supplemental medically tailored grocery program. The StrongPeople StrongHearts program is a 12-week group program, with two meetings per week, that incorporates education on nutrition and physical activity for weight management and cardiovascular health, as well as strength training and aerobic exercises. The supplemental MTG program will utilize a grocery delivery platform(s) to deliver a weekly medically tailored grocery box of produce worth approximately $30 (costs covered by grant funds). Box contents will be tailored by the PI, who is a registered dietitian licensed in South Carolina, to participants' nutrition needs and functional abilities (e.g., pre-cut vegetables for participants with limited hand functionality). Participants will receive an allotment of produce each week, as well as a recipe(s) and virtual cooking demonstration providing practical strategies on incorporating each week's produce.

  • BehavioralStrongPeople StrongHearts

    The StrongPeople StrongHearts program is a 12-week group program, with two meetings per week, that incorporates education on nutrition and physical activity for weight management and cardiovascular health, as well as strength training and aerobic exercises. Participants of this intervention will receive a systematically adapted version of this program tailored to the physical capacities of the target population (chronic stroke survivors). The systematically adapted version of StrongPeople StrongHearts will be used across both experimental arms in this study.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Physical Activity

    Physical activity will be assessed objectively with accelerometers as well as subjectively with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short form

    Time frame: Baseline, post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (24 weeks)

  2. Stroke Impact Scale 3.0 (SIS)

    Subjective Physical and Psychosocial Function

    Time frame: Baseline, post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (24 weeks)

  3. Diet Quality

    Diet quality will be assessed with the Healthy Eating Index-2020, calculated from two 24-hour recalls collected using the Automated Self-Administered 24-hour recall. Diet quality will also be assessed with the 26-item Dietary Screener Questionnaire (DSQ).

    Time frame: Baseline, post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (24 weeks)

Secondary outcomes

  1. Weight

    Weight will be self-reported but measured using clinical-grade scales provided to participants for the course of the intervention.

    Time frame: Baseline, post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (24 weeks)

  2. Food Security

    Household food security will be assessed with the Six-item Short Form of the Food Security survey module developed by the USDA Economic Research Service

    Time frame: Baseline, post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (24 weeks)

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • Pee Dee Research and Education Center
    Florence, South Carolina 29506, United States
    Recruiting
    • Hannah Wilson, PhD, RDN, LD · Contacthkw2@clemson.edu · 478-230-0809
    • Hannah Wilson, PhD, RDN, LD · Principal investigator
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Started Jun 2025 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Mar 2028, 33 months after the start.

Of 3,108 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Stroke, half reached primary completion within 23 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 46. This study's planned 33 months is above that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 3,252 studies reached it within 23 months; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 46.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Aug 21, 2025
First posted
Aug 26, 2025
StartActual
Jun 27, 2025
Primary completionEst.
Mar 31, 2028
CompletionEst.
Mar 31, 2028
Last update
Aug 26, 2025
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Aug 26, 2025, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07140952
Lead sponsor
Clemson University
Collaborators
American Heart Association
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Aug 26, 2025
Start date
Jun 27, 2025
Primary completion
Mar 31, 2028 (estimated)
Completion
Mar 31, 2028 (estimated)
Last update
Aug 26, 2025

Study contacts

Hannah Wilson, PhD, RDN, LD
Contact
hkw2@clemson.edu
478-230-0809

Oversight

FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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