INTRODUCTION: @entity68785 Mood is an interactive system with an embodied virtual agent (avatar) to assist in self-monitoring of @entity1 receiving treatment for @entity308 . @entity68785 Mood supports self-report and biometric monitoring and includes elements of cognitive behavioural therapy. We aimed to evaluate system use and acceptability, to explore likely recruitment and retention rates in a clinical trial and to obtain an estimate of potential treatment response with a view to conducting a future randomised controlled trial (RCT). METHODS: We conducted a pilot RCT of @entity68785 Mood in three centres, in Romania, Spain and Scotland, UK. @entity1 with diagnosed @entity308 ( @entity308 ) and current mild/moderate @entity308 were randomised to use the system for four weeks in addition to treatment as usual (TAU) or to TAU alone. RESULTS: Twenty-seven individuals were randomised and follow-up data were obtained from 21 @entity1 (12/13 Help4Mood, 9/14 TAU). Half of @entity1 randomised to @entity68785 Mood used it regularly (more than 10 times); none used it every day. Acceptability varied between users. Some valued the emotional responsiveness of the system, while others found it too repetitive. Intention to treat analysis showed a small difference in change of Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-2) scores ( @entity68785 Mood -5.7 points, TAU -4.2). Post-hoc on-treatment analysis suggested that @entity1 who used @entity68785 Mood regularly experienced a median change in BDI-2 of -8 points. CONCLUSION: @entity68785 Mood is acceptable to some @entity1 receiving treatment for @entity308 although none used it as regularly as intended. Changes in @entity308 symptoms in individuals who used the system regularly reached potentially meaningful levels.

Pilot randomised controlled trial of Help4Mood, an embodied virtual agent-based system to support treatment of XXXX .

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['participants', 'Patients', 'patients'] @entity308 :: ('MESH:D003866', 'Disease') :: ['depressive symptoms', 'depression', 'major depressive disorder'] @entity68785 :: ('26610', 'Gene') :: ['Help4']
@entity308 :: (MESH:D003866,Disease) :: ['depression']
