Stress Disorders, Post-TraumaticPhase 3NCT00000379
Fluoxetine vs EMDR to Treat Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
A Phase 3 study testing Fluoxetine and EMDR in people with Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, run by Boston University at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The purpose of this study is to compare two treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): fluoxetine (an antidepressant) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR, a psychological treatment in which the patient is led through the memory of a traumatic experience in order to heal him/herself). Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 65 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
- What is being tested?
- Fluoxetine and EMDR
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- How many people
- Not given
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- Jan 1999to Dec 2003
- Phase
- Phase 3
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 65 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- -
- Patients must have:
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Who cannot join
None listed.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
Official title: Treatment of Outcomes of Fluoxetine vs EMDR in PTSD
The purpose of this study is to compare two treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): fluoxetine (an antidepressant) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR, a psychological treatment in which the patient is led through the memory of a traumatic experience in order to heal him/herself).
There are a variety of therapies used to treat PTSD, but the effectiveness of medication alone vs an exposure treatment, such as EMDR, has not been tested.
Read more
Patients will be assigned randomly (like tossing a coin) to one of three groups for 8 weeks of treatment. Group 1 will receive fluoxetine; Group 2 will receive EMDR; and Group 3 will receive inactive placebo. Patients will then stop treatment and have evaluations, including psychological tests, at the time treatment is stopped, 8 weeks later, and at 6 months.
An individual may be eligible for this study if he/she:
Has PTSD and is 18 to 65 years old.
Read the detailed description
To compare the short-term and long-term efficacy of two different treatment approaches in widespread use in clinical settings for treating patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): fluoxetine (which acts directly on biological systems) vs a psychological treatment, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). To clarify: 1) the differential treatment effects of these different treatment modalities; 2) whether symptom improvement is accompanied by changes in pathophysiology; and 3) the long-term effectiveness of these treatments.
In recent years a variety of treatment approaches have been shown to be effective in the treatment of PTSD. These include prolonged exposure therapies (PE), stress inoculation training (SIT), EMDR and psychopharmacological treatment with serotonin re-uptake blockers. While PE has been compared with SIT and a study is currently under way comparing cognitive-behavioral treatment with EMDR, no study as yet has compared the relative merits of pharmacotherapy alone vs an exposure treatment. While it is commonly held that, in order to recover, people with PTSD need to "process" their traumatic memories, treatments that do not involve the processing of traumatic memories (such as SIT or pharmacotherapy) may be just as effective. In clinical practice, many patients with PTSD appear to be effectively treated with pharmacological agents alone, without trauma-focused therapy.
Patients are randomly assigned to one of three conditions: 1) a double-blind psychopharmacological treatment (fluoxetine); 2) a manualized treatment which focuses on "processing" traumatic memories (EMDR); or 3) a placebo control group. After 8 weeks of active treatment, subjects are evaluated, cease treatment, and are assessed again after another 8 weeks and at 6 months in order to evaluate the long-term effects. Training raters remain blind to the subjects' treatment condition throughout the study. Treatment outcome is assessed with a multi-modal psychological and biological assessment battery including: 1) standard psychological tests for PTSD (CAPS); 2) neuroendocrine function (cortisol); and 3) psychophysiological response to traumatic scripts (pre-post changes in heart social and occupational functioning). Treatment adherence is monitored throughout the study.
- Conditions
- Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
- Being tested
- Fluoxetine, EMDR
- Keywords
- Adult, Comparative Study, Desensitization, Psychologic, Eye Movements, Female, Fluoxetine, Human, Male, Placebos, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Treatment Outcome, Desensitization, Psychologic -- *methods, Fluoxetine -- *therapeutic use, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic -- *therapy, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic -- drug therapy
- Medical subject headings
- Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress Disorders, Traumatic
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
FluoxetineDrug
EMDRBehavioural
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted3 Nov 1999 (estimated)
- Study startJan 1999
- Study completionDec 2003
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Stress Disorders, Post-TraumaticStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Boston UniversityThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase 3
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Boston University
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
- Investigators
- Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD, Principal investigator
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT00000379
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- R01MH058363
- Other IDs
- R01MH058363, DSIR AT-CT
- Status last verified
- Feb 2014
- First submitted
- 2 Nov 1999
- Last updated
- 20 Feb 2014
- Results posted
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 20 Feb 2014. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Treatment of Outcomes of Fluoxetine vs EMDR in PTSD
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT00000379
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- R01MH058363
- Conditions
- Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
- Keywords
- Adult, Comparative Study, Desensitization, Psychologic, Eye Movements, Female, Fluoxetine, Human, Male
- Phase
- Phase 3
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Lead sponsor
- Boston UniversityUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
- Study start
- Jan 1999
- Study completion
- Dec 2003
- First posted
- 3 Nov 1999 (estimated)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The purpose of this study is to compare two treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): fluoxetine (an antidepressant) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR, a psychological treatment in which the patient is led through the memory of a traumatic experience in order to heal him/herself).
There are a variety of therapies used to treat PTSD, but the effectiveness of medication alone vs an exposure treatment, such as EMDR, has not been tested.
Patients will be assigned randomly (like tossing a coin) to one of three groups for 8 weeks of treatment. Group 1 will receive fluoxetine; Group 2 will receive EMDR; and Group 3 will receive inactive placebo. Patients will then stop treatment and have evaluations, including psychological tests, at the time treatment is stopped, 8 weeks later, and at 6 months.
An individual may be eligible for this study if he/she:
Has PTSD and is 18 to 65 years old.
Detailed description
To compare the short-term and long-term efficacy of two different treatment approaches in widespread use in clinical settings for treating patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): fluoxetine (which acts directly on biological systems) vs a psychological treatment, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). To clarify: 1) the differential treatment effects of these different treatment modalities; 2) whether symptom improvement is accompanied by changes in pathophysiology; and 3) the long-term effectiveness of these treatments.
In recent years a variety of treatment approaches have been shown to be effective in the treatment of PTSD. These include prolonged exposure therapies (PE), stress inoculation training (SIT), EMDR and psychopharmacological treatment with serotonin re-uptake blockers. While PE has been compared with SIT and a study is currently under way comparing cognitive-behavioral treatment with EMDR, no study as yet has compared the relative merits of pharmacotherapy alone vs an exposure treatment. While it is commonly held that, in order to recover, people with PTSD need to "process" their traumatic memories, treatments that do not involve the processing of traumatic memories (such as SIT or pharmacotherapy) may be just as effective. In clinical practice, many patients with PTSD appear to be effectively treated with pharmacological agents alone, without trauma-focused therapy.
Patients are randomly assigned to one of three conditions: 1) a double-blind psychopharmacological treatment (fluoxetine); 2) a manualized treatment which focuses on "processing" traumatic memories (EMDR); or 3) a placebo control group. After 8 weeks of active treatment, subjects are evaluated, cease treatment, and are assessed again after another 8 weeks and at 6 months in order to evaluate the long-term effects. Training raters remain blind to the subjects' treatment condition throughout the study. Treatment outcome is assessed with a multi-modal psychological and biological assessment battery including: 1) standard psychological tests for PTSD (CAPS); 2) neuroendocrine function (cortisol); and 3) psychophysiological response to traumatic scripts (pre-post changes in heart social and occupational functioning). Treatment adherence is monitored throughout the study.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- -
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Key exclusion criteria (0 listed)
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Fluoxetine | Drug | – |
| EMDR | Behavioural | – |
Primary outcome
Not reported in the source record.
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 20 Feb 2014.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD principal investigator
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A Phase 3 study testing Fluoxetine and EMDR in people with Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, run by Boston University at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 0 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 20 Feb 2014. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
What does this phase mean?
Phase 3 studies compare the treatment with the current standard treatment or a placebo in a large group, to confirm how well it works and watch for side effects.
Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 20 Feb 2014.