The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether brain scan results can help predict and track changes in obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, symptoms in children and teens ages 10 to 17 who receive Exposure and Response Prevention therapy, also called ERP. ERP is a type of therapy in which participants practice facing OCD-related fears while resisting rituals or compulsions.
The main question this study aims to answer is:
Can each participant's pattern of brain connections, measured with functional MRI brain scans, help predict and track weekly changes in OCD symptoms during and after a 14-week course of ERP, including during planned monthly booster sessions and additional booster sessions offered if symptoms worsen?
All participants will receive ERP. There is no placebo and no comparison group.
Participants will:
* Complete screening, consent or assent, interviews, questionnaires, and MRI safety checks * Receive 14 weekly ERP sessions * Complete OCD symptom assessments and functional MRI brain scans before, during, and after ERP * Receive planned monthly ERP booster sessions after the 14 weekly sessions * Receive additional brief ERP booster sessions if OCD symptoms worsen during follow-up * Take part for up to about 62 weeks
Age 10 to 17 years at the time of initial consent. Participants who reach age 18 while enrolled may remain in the study after completing the adult re-consent process; no new participants age 18 years or older will be recruited.
DSM-5 diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder, established through a clinical interview by a clinician.
Parent or guardian able to provide informed consent and participant able to provide assent.
Participant has sufficient English fluency to complete cognitive tasks and assessments. Parent or guardian English fluency is not required; interpreter support is available.
History or current evidence of a significant neurological disorder, including but not limited to seizure disorder, stroke, or traumatic brain injury with loss of consciousness.
Any standard MRI contraindication identified during initial screening or on the MRI safety checklist, including but not limited to ferromagnetic implants, certain medical devices or metal fragments, severe claustrophobia, or pregnancy.
Pregnancy at screening or pregnancy identified during study participation.
Active suicidal ideation.
Single group
Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy
BehavioralExposure and response prevention (ERP) is an evidence-based form of cognitive behavioral therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder. ERP involves graded exposure to obsession-triggering cues while supporting participants in refraining from compulsive responses. In this study, participants receive 14 planned weekly ERP sessions of approximately 60 minutes each, followed by three scheduled monthly booster sessions and optional symptom-triggered booster sessions during the maintenance phase. ERP may be delivered in person or by HIPAA-compliant telehealth.
Clinical Assessments
Other interventionParticipants complete repeated clinical assessments according to the study schedule to evaluate obsessive-compulsive disorder symptom severity, symptom change, functioning, safety, and related clinical outcomes over time. Assessments may include clinician-administered ratings, participant-report measures, and other study outcome measures. These assessments are conducted for research and clinical monitoring purposes and are not intended as a therapeutic intervention.
Research MRI Sessions
Diagnostic testParticipants complete research magnetic resonance imaging sessions at scheduled study time points to acquire structural and functional MRI data, including functional MRI measures used to evaluate brain connectivity over time. Imaging sessions are used to examine changes in brain circuitry in relation to obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms and treatment course. These sessions are conducted for research measurement purposes and are not intended to provide clinical diagnosis or treatment.
Association Between CY-BOCS-II Total Score and Orbitofrontal Cortex-Ventral Striatum Resting-State Functional Connectivity During Acute ERP
The primary outcome is the within-participant association between obsessive-compulsive disorder symptom severity and resting-state functional connectivity during the acute ERP phase. OCD symptom severity will be measured using the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale, Second Edition total score. OFC-ventral striatum resting-state functional connectivity will be measured using Fisher z-transformed resting-state fMRI connectivity. The association will be estimated using visit-level linear mixed-effects models. CY-BOCS-II total scores range from 0 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater OCD symptom severity.
Change From Baseline in CY-BOCS-II Total Score at End of Acute ERP
Clinical symptom change will be measured as the change in Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale, Second Edition total score from baseline to the end-of-acute ERP assessment visit. CY-BOCS-II total scores range from 0 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater OCD symptom severity. A decrease in score indicates improvement.
Number of Participants With Treatment-Emergent Adverse Events
Safety and tolerability will be assessed by the number and proportion of participants with treatment-emergent adverse events during study participation. Adverse events include unfavorable or unintended signs, symptoms, diseases, or worsening of pre-existing conditions temporally associated with study procedures, whether or not considered related to ERP, MRI/fMRI, symptom-reactivity tasks, or other study procedures.
Change in CY-BOCS-II Total Score From End of Acute ERP to Last Booster or Maintenance Visit
Maintenance of clinical gains will be assessed as the change in Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale, Second Edition total score from the end-of-acute ERP assessment visit to the last booster or maintenance clinical assessment visit. CY-BOCS-II total scores range from 0 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater OCD symptom severity. A decrease in score indicates improvement, while an increase indicates symptom worsening.
Change in OFC-Ventral Striatum Resting-State Functional Connectivity From End of Acute ERP to Last Booster or Maintenance Imaging Visit
Maintenance of neural change will be assessed as the change in orbitofrontal cortex-ventral striatum resting-state functional connectivity from the end-of-acute ERP imaging visit to the last booster or maintenance imaging visit. Resting-state functional connectivity will be derived from fMRI data and Fisher z-transformed for analysis.
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