MAGENTA: Managed Activity Graded Exercise in Teenagers and Pre-Adolescents
The MAGENTA pragmatic parallel groups randomised controlled trial (RCT) compared graded exercise therapy (GET) with activity management (AM) in treating paediatric myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). MAGENTA recruited participants from September 2015 to March 2018, with 12-month follow-up. Recruitment started during an initial feasibility phase, which successfully progressed to a full trial.
Children aged 8-17 years with mild/moderate ME/CFS and presenting to NHS specialist paediatric services were allocated at random to either individualised flexible treatment focussing on physical activity (GET, 123 participants) or on managing cognitive, school and social activity (AM, 118 participants) delivered by NHS therapists. The RCT found no evidence that GET was more effective or cost-effective than AM in this setting, with very limited improvement in either study group evident by the 6-month or 12-month assessment points.
This work was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, SRF-2013-06-013.
Publications:
Brigden A, Beasant L, Hollingworth W et al (2016) Managed Activity Graded Exercise iN Teenagers and pre-Adolescents (MAGENTA) feasibility randomised controlled trial: study protocol. BMJ Open 6(7):e011255. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011255
Brigden A, Beasant L, Gaunt D et al (2019) Results of the feasibility phase of the managed activity graded exercise in teenagers and pre-adolescents (MAGENTA) randomised controlled trial of treatments for chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis. Pilot Feasibility Stud 5:151. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40814-019-0525-3
Gaunt DM, Brigden A, Harris SRS, Hollingworth W, Jago R, Solomon-Moore E, et al. Graded exercise therapy compared to activity management for paediatric chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis: pragmatic randomized controlled trial. Eur J Pediatr. 2024;183(5):2343-51. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-024-05458-x