The Effects of Very Brief Exposure on PTSD in U.S. Combat Veterans
ConditionPost Traumatic Stress Disorder
Trial statusRecruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age18-50
SponsorChildren's Hospital Los Angeles
About this trial
The goal of this clinical trial is to develop a new behavioral treatment for U.S. combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), very brief exposure to combat-related stimuli. The main questions it aims to answer are:
1. How does Very Brief Exposure (combat images and control everyday images) and Visible Exposure to combat stimuli affect brain activity and subjective fear ratings? 2. To what extent are participants aware of the stimuli presented and tolerating the exposures?
All participants will view both very brief exposure and visible exposure to combat stimuli in the functional magnetic brain imaging (fMRI) scan. They will provide ratings of fear, awareness, and tolerability. Researchers will compare U.S. combat veterans with PTSD and healthy controls to confirm differences in brain region activation and ratings.
Eligibility criteria
Qualifiers
Males and females ages 18-50
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM-5) diagnosis of PTSD
Traumatic event is a combat-based experience (e.g., being injured, watching a buddy be killed)
Minimum score of 18 on the Combat Experience Scale (CES)
Disqualifiers
Treatment for PTSD, substance abuse, or mental health concerns in the past 6 months
10 or more years since the combat trauma
Acute intoxication
Severe level of Substance Dependence (6 or more DSM-V symptoms)
Trial design
Treatments tested in this trial
- Very Brief Exposure to Combat Images
Treatment groups
80 Participants
are divided into 1 treatment groupSponsors and collaborators
Source ClinicalTrials.gov