View clinical trials related to Stress Disorders, Traumatic.
Filter by:This study will examine the role of substance P, a chemical messenger in the brain, in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a chronic anxiety disorder. PTSD can develop after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal, such as a violent personal assault, natural or human-caused disaster, accident, or military combat. Substance P is a peptide that may be important in the response to certain psychiatric and neurological diseases and conditions, including anxiety. Healthy normal volunteers and people with PTSD who are between 18 and 65 years of age may be eligible for this study. Candidates are screened with a physical examination, blood and urine tests, pregnancy test for women who can become pregnant, and a neuropsychological evaluation. Participants undergo positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning. An optional lumbar puncture (spinal tap) is also requested. PET Scanning PET uses small amounts of a radioactive chemical called a tracer that "labels" active areas of the brain. The tracer used in this study is [18F]SPA-RQ. For the procedure, the subject lies still on the scanner bed. A special mask is fitted to the head to help keep the subject's head still during the scan so the images will be clear. A 20-minute "transmission" scan is done before the radioactive tracer is injected to provide measures of the brain that will help in the precise calculation of information from subsequent scans. After the tracer is injected through a needle in the arm, pictures are taken continuously for about 2 hours. Then, 20- to 40-minute images are taken every hour until about 5 hours after the injection. MRI Scanning An MRI scan is scheduled at some time within 1 year of the PET scan. MRI uses a magnetic field and radio waves to obtain images of body tissues and organs. The subject lies still on a table inside the tunnel-like MRI scanner. Earplugs are worn to muffle loud noises that occur during the scanning. The maximum duration of the scan is 60 minutes. Lumbar Puncture Lumbar puncture is used to examine the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) that surrounds both the brain and the spinal cord. For this procedure, a local anesthetic is given to numb the skin in the lower back area. A small needle is then inserted into the space between the bones in the lower back where the CSF circulates below the spinal cord. A small amount of fluid is collected through the needle. Blood Draw A blood sample is collected to generate cell lines that can be used to extract DNA (genetic material) for gene studies and that can be frozen for future use.
This is a study investigating immune function and relationships to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to controls without PTSD. The study involves 99 adult veterans and civilian subjects over a 3 year period. The study involves measuring immune and neuroendocrine parameters from blood samples obtained before and after a dexamethasone suppression test. The aim of the study is to determine whether immune alterations exist in PTSD and whether the immune-HPA axis interactions in this disorder are different from non-PTSD subjects with the future aim of studying whether immune dysregulation in PTSD may be linked to the increased risk for medical and psychiatric comorbidity in this population.
This research project is a follow-up to the prior VA-funded study that found that chronic fatigue reported by many Gulf War veterans may be a symptom of dysfunctional cardiovascular stress response regulation. Specifically, ill veterans had diminished autonomic responses during demanding psychosocial tasks involving high level cognitive processing and emotional stress. There was a close relationship between clinical status of ill veterans and their inability to mount an appropriate physiological response under stress. The main objective of the present investigation is to determine the specific mechanism through which this abnormality may contribute to Gulf War-related chronic fatigue. We also observed that Gulf veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) had the most dampened autonomic activation to stressors involving higher brain activities. The second major focus of this study is to explore the role of a psychiatric disorder, specifically PTSD, as a factor in abnormalities in stress response regulation. This aspect of the study may also provide pertinent information as to the role of stress of military deployment as a contributing factor in post-Gulf War illnesses.
The purpose of this research of 400 participants is to determine whether a drug called risperidone can decrease symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It is a placebo-controlled study, meaning that half of the participants will be assigned to receive a pill that contains no drug. The treatment phase of the study will last for 6 months, during which time participants will continue to receive all their usual treatments in addition to the study treatment and will be asked to complete procedures and assessments (questionnaires, interviews, laboratory tests, physical exams, etc.) related to their PTSD symptoms at various points within the 6-month treatment phase. At the end of the 6-month study, participants will discontinue the study treatment.
The purpose of this study is to examine and compare the effects of two body therapy approaches in women who have experienced child sexual abuse.
The goal of this clinical trial is to compare MDMA-assisted therapy to placebo with therapy in people with chronic, treatment-resistant posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The main question it aims to answer is: Is there a reduction in PTSD symptoms among people given MDMA-assisted therapy compared to placebo with therapy? Participants will receive either MDMA-assisted therapy or placebo with therapy during two blinded experimental sessions spaced three to five weeks apart. During experimental sessions, participants receive an initial dose of 125 mg of MDMA, or placebo, followed by a dose of 62.5 mg of MDMA, or placebo. During this treatment period, participants will also undergo non-drug preparatory psychotherapy sessions and non-drug integrative sessions. The study will test whether MDMA-assisted therapy can be safely given to participants. Researchers will compare PTSD symptoms in the MDMA-assisted therapy group to the placebo with therapy group to see if there is a reduction in symptoms after the treatment period.
This study will develop a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) program to treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in people with severe mental illnesses who are treated within community mental health systems.
To evaluate Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease in American Indians.
This study will compare one- and two-component treatments in women with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
This 10-week study will examine whether propranolol, a medication that blocks the activity of the stress hormones adrenaline and noradrenaline, can relieve acute stress disorder (ASD) and symptoms from persisting long-term. ASD is a condition that some people develop soon after exposure to trauma. They may be anxious, depressed, have trouble sleeping, startle easily, have difficulties concentrating, and feel as though the event is happening again. Propranolol has been used for many years to treat high blood pressure and heart disease, and has been found useful in treating anxiety states such as social phobia and migraine. Men and women between 18 and 65 years of age who were recently exposed to trauma (between 1 and 3 weeks of evaluation in this study) may be eligible for this study. Candidates must be diagnosed with ASD and must have been mentally healthy before the traumatic event. They will be screened for the study with a medical and psychiatric interview, physical examination, electrocardiogram (EKG), and blood and urine tests. Participants will be evaluated with the following procedures: - Neuropsychological tests using pen-and-paper and computer tests to evaluate cognitive function, particularly memory, learning, attention and concentration, and vocabulary and naming. - Emotion-related performance tasks to determine if the study medication can weaken emotionally arousing information by blocking the activity of adrenaline and noradrenaline. Subjects perform emotion-related and neutral tasks, such as looking at pictures with neutral, pleasant, or unpleasant content, both before and after treatment with the study medication (see below). - Traumatic script exposure: Subjects recount the traumatic event that caused them to develop ASD. The description is summarized, recorded, and played back to the subject. During the playback, physiological responses, such as heart rate and skin conductance (sweating), are recorded using electrodes taped to the hand and chest. - Fear conditioning to evaluate the response to an unpleasant stimulus: Several mild electrical shocks are delivered to the wrists while the subject looks at colored squares. Heart rate and skin conductance are measured. - Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine brain structure. The subject lies on a table that is moved into the MRI scanner (a narrow cylinder containing a strong magnetic field) and must remain still during the actual scanning. Earplugs are worn to muffle loud noises caused by electrical switching of radio frequency circuits used in the scanning process. After the evaluation, participants are randomly assigned to receive either propranolol or placebo (a look-alike pill with no active ingredient) for 8 weeks During this time they are seen by a doctor once a week for 4 weeks and then once every other week for the rest of the study. At the end of the 8-week treatment period, participants undergo the same evaluation they had before beginning treatment (see above). The decision to continue treatment will then be decided based on the individual's clinical condition and whether he or she received propranolol or placebo.