Clinical Trials Logo

Clinical Trial Summary

This study is investigating whether acute administration of citalopram is associated with a decrease in stress reactivity in healthy volunteers, compared to placebo administration. Using a parallel-group double-blind design, participants will be randomised to receive either an acute dose of citalopram or placebo. All participants will have come in for a screening visit. On the day of the research visit (following drug administration) participants will have completed a number of widely used computer-based cognitive tasks measuring emotional processing biases. They will then complete the Oxford Cognition Stress Task, a web-based acute stress induction paradigm, which is designed to induce mild transient increases in stress and arousal. Identifying early changes in stress reactivity following antidepressant treatment will increase the investigator's knowledge of how antidepressants operate, and provide putative targets to identify early response to antidepressants.


Clinical Trial Description

In the Oxford Cognition Stress Task (OCST), participants are presented with a series of mental arithmetic, verbal (anagrams) and visuospatial (visual search) challenges on a computer screen. There is a time limit for completing each challenge, which is displayed on the screen as a time bar. To induce a high failure rate, the timing and difficulty of the challenges is automatically varied to ensure participants are correctly complete only 20-40% of the challenges within the time, and some of the verbal challenges (anagrams) are impossible to solve. Participants are given feedback on their performance on the screen which indicates that they are performing badly. Heart rate will be measured continuously during the OCST, and during pre- and post- task periods. Baseline and post-OCST measures of blood pressure and samples of saliva (for cortisol analysis) will be taken. Participants will also complete Visual Analogue Scales pre- and post-OCST to give a subjective measure of stress and mood. Participants will not be told the extent to which becoming stressed (and finding the task difficult) is intended. At the end of the test session, participants will be fully debriefed as to the nature of the OCST. ;


Study Design


Related Conditions & MeSH terms


NCT number NCT04161209
Study type Interventional
Source University of Oxford
Contact Susannah Murphy, DPhil
Phone 01865 618313
Email susannah.murphy@psych.ox.ac.uk
Status Recruiting
Phase N/A
Start date October 11, 2019
Completion date September 2020

See also
  Status Clinical Trial Phase
Active, not recruiting NCT05777044 - The Effect of Hatha Yoga on Mental Health N/A
Recruiting NCT04680611 - Severe Asthma, MepolizumaB and Affect: SAMBA Study
Recruiting NCT04977232 - Adjunctive Game Intervention for Anhedonia in MDD Patients N/A
Recruiting NCT04043052 - Mobile Technologies and Post-stroke Depression N/A
Completed NCT04512768 - Treating Comorbid Insomnia in Transdiagnostic Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behaviour Therapy N/A
Recruiting NCT03207828 - Testing Interventions for Patients With Fibromyalgia and Depression N/A
Completed NCT04617015 - Defining and Treating Depression-related Asthma Early Phase 1
Recruiting NCT06011681 - The Rapid Diagnosis of MCI and Depression in Patients Ages 60 and Over
Completed NCT04476446 - An Expanded Access Protocol for Esketamine Treatment in Participants With Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) Who do Not Have Other Treatment Alternatives Phase 3
Recruiting NCT02783430 - Evaluation of the Initial Prescription of Ketamine and Milnacipran in Depression in Patients With a Progressive Disease Phase 2/Phase 3
Recruiting NCT05563805 - Exploring Virtual Reality Adventure Training Exergaming N/A
Completed NCT04598165 - Mobile WACh NEO: Mobile Solutions for Neonatal Health and Maternal Support N/A
Completed NCT03457714 - Guided Internet Delivered Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy for Persons With Spinal Cord Injury: A Feasibility Trial
Recruiting NCT05956912 - Implementing Group Metacognitive Therapy in Cardiac Rehabilitation Services (PATHWAY-Beacons)
Completed NCT05588622 - Meru Health Program for Cancer Patients With Depression and Anxiety N/A
Recruiting NCT05234476 - Behavioral Activation Plus Savoring for University Students N/A
Active, not recruiting NCT05006976 - A Naturalistic Trial of Nudging Clinicians in the Norwegian Sickness Absence Clinic. The NSAC Nudge Study N/A
Enrolling by invitation NCT03276585 - Night in Japan Home Sleep Monitoring Study
Completed NCT03167372 - Pilot Comparison of N-of-1 Trials of Light Therapy N/A
Terminated NCT03275571 - HIV, Computerized Depression Therapy & Cognition N/A