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Primary InsomniaPhase 2NCT01286324

Chamomile for Chronic Primary Insomnia

A Phase 2 study testing Chamomile High Grade Extract in people with Primary Insomnia and Chronic Insomnia, run by University of Michigan at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

The purpose of this study is to determine if an herb called chamomile can help to treat insomnia (difficulty in going to sleep or getting enough sleep) by increasing the amount of time that you sleep and/or improving the quality of your sleep. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 64 years
Conditions the study is for
Primary Insomnia, Chronic Insomnia
What is being tested?
Chamomile High Grade Extract
Type of treatment
Pill or oral medicine
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
34 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Jul 2008to Dec 2010
Phase
Phase 2
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

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 64 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • Men and women aged 18 to 64 years;
  • Must be able to give written informed consent;
  • Have a diagnosis of primary insomnia per DSM-IV criteria, reporting < 6.5 hours sleep and/or >30 minutes to fall asleep (SOL) and/or wake after sleep onset (WASO) > 30 minutes, three or more nights per week;
  • Present sleep complaint for at least 6 months;

Who cannot join

  • Women who are pregnant, lactating or less than six months post-partum. Due to the fact that an assessment of reproductive performance and teratology tests have not been conducted we are excluding pregnant and lactating women;
  • Patients with unstable medical conditions;
  • DSM-IV Axis I or personality disorder diagnosis with the exception of patients with treated and stable unipolar depression or generalized anxiety disorder (such that the PRIME-MD scores are within normal range for these disorders);
  • Difficulty in sleep initiation or maintenance associated with known medical diagnosis or conditions that may affect sleep, e.g., sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, chronic pain;
  • Evidence of lack of reliability or noncompliance as defined by missing a pretreatment appointment more than twice;
  • Current diagnosis of substance abuse or dependence;
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  • Known allergy to chamomile or members of the ragweed family;
  • Currently taking cyclosporine, warfarin or chronic sedative and anxiolytic medications;
  • Prior use of insomnia medications is not exclusionary, but patients must be off of these medications at the screening visit and through out the study.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Michigan Department of Family Medicine

    Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48105

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: A Pilot Grant to Examine the Feasibility, Efficacy and Tolerability of a Standardized Chamomile Extract in Treating Chronic Primary Insomnia

The purpose of this study is to determine if an herb called chamomile can help to treat insomnia (difficulty in going to sleep or getting enough sleep) by increasing the amount of time that you sleep and/or improving the quality of your sleep. The study will also be looking at the effect of chamomile on day time fatigue and functioning.

Read the detailed description

Insomnia, defined as the inability to initiate or maintain sleep or lack of restorative sleep, is the most prevalent sleep complaint in primary care. Insomnia is associated with decreased quality of life, work limitations and increased healthcare utilization. Currently there is no treatment for chronic insomnia that is readily available, affordable, without significant side-effects and demonstrated to be safe for long term use. Consequently, treatments that would fill this gap are needed.

Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) has been used as a gentle sleep agent by herbalists for several hundred years. It has been studied in animals for its sedative potential and shows promise for treating insomnia. Currently, chamomile's sedative mechanisms of action are unknown, but are thought to be through the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, γ - aminobutyric acid (GABA). However, no study has examined chamomile's efficacy and safety for treating insomnia.

The investigators propose a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial of chamomile in primary care patients with chronic insomnia. Thirty-four patients will be randomized to either Chamomile High Grade Extract, three 5 mg tablets standardized to 0.4% (-)-α-bisabolol twice daily or placebo and will be followed for 28 days for changes in a sleep diary (sleep efficiency, total sleep time, sleep-onset latency and sleep quality), insomnia severity and sleep disturbances. Secondary endpoints include assessing changes in day time functioning (measures of global quality of life, depression and anxiety) and monitoring for any signs of toxicity. The investigators will also determine the feasibility of conducting a larger trial with this agent.

Being tested
Chamomile High Grade Extract, Placebo Tablet
Keywords
Matricaria, Chamomile, Herb, Insomnia
Medical subject headings
Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Chamomile High Grade ExtractDietary supplement

    three tablets each (equivalent to 7.5 g of dried herb) p.o. twice daily for 28 days

  • Placebo TabletDrug

Study groups in NCT01286324
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Chamomile High Grade ExtractExperimentalEach capsule contains 90 mg dry extract of chamomile flowering tops [6:1 (v/v) extraction solvent (ethanol 70%/30% water): flowering tops] standardized up to 2.5 mg of (-)-α-bisabolol and ≥ 2.5 mg of apigenin per tablet
Receives: Dietary Supplement: Chamomile High Grade Extract
Placebo TabletPlacebo comparatorContained lactose
Receives: Drug: Placebo Tablet

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Change From Baseline of Chamomile Extract on Measures of Sleep at Day 28.

    Change from baseline of chamomile extract, three tablets (equivalent to 7.5 g of dried herb) p.o. twice times daily versus placebo on the following sleep measures at 28 days:

    • the change from baseline of daily self-report of sleep as assessed by a sleep diary that includes determination of: (i) sleep efficiency, which equals "The total sleep time divided by time-in-bed, multiplied by 100." This measure is our primary aim (SE).

    Measured: baseline and day 28

Secondary outcomes (5)
  1. Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures: BDI

    Change from baseline of chamomile extract, three tablets p.o. twice times daily versus placebo on daytime functioning measures at 28 days:

    • the change from baseline of measures of depression and anxiety evaluated respectively with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), which is scored on a scale of 0 to 63 where a total score of 0-13 is considered minimal range (minimal depression), 14-19 is mild, 20-28 is moderate, and 29-63 is severe.

    Measured: baseline and day 28

  2. Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures: STAI

    Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures, depression and anxiety evaluated respectively with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and trait portrait of the State Trait Anxiety Index (STAI). STAI scores range for each subtest from 20-80, the higher score indicating greater anxiety. A cut point of 39-40 has been suggested to detect clinically significant symptoms for the S-Anxiety scale

    Measured: Baseline and 28 days

  3. Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures: Fatigue Severity Scale

    Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures: Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) Range: 9 to 63. The 9-item scale measures the severity of fatigue and its effect on a person's activities and lifestyle in patients with a variety of disorders.

    The minimum score = 9 and maximum score possible = 63. Higher the score = greater fatigue severity.

    Measured: Baseline and 28 days

  4. Change From Baseline of Chamomile on Daytime Functioning Measures [ Time Frame: Baseline and Day 28 ]

    the change from baseline of global QOL (as determined by the 12 Item Short Form Health Survey Version 2 {SF-12 V2})

    Measured: Baseline and 28 days

  5. Changes From Baseline in the Safety and Tolerability of Chamomile

    Changes from baseline in the safety and tolerability of Chamomile High Grade Extract, three tablets (equivalent to 7.5g of dried herb) p.o. twice times daily versus placebo were measured by counting all participants who reported a serious or non-serious adverse event at the weekly check-ins that were established.

    Measured: once per week during study and day 28

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted31 Jan 2011 (estimated)
  2. Study startJul 2008
  3. Primary completionDec 2010
  4. Study completionDec 2010

Resources

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 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Quadruple blind
Who is masked
Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
34 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT01286324
Sponsor's protocol ID
101,749
Status last verified
Oct 2017
First submitted
24 Jan 2011
Last updated
7 Nov 2017
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Zick SM, Wright BD, Sen A, Arnedt JT. Preliminary examination of the efficacy and safety of a standardized chamomile extract for chronic primary insomnia: a randomized placebo-controlled pilot study. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2011 Sep 22;11:78. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-11-78.

    PubMed 21939549

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing Chamomile High Grade Extract in people with Primary Insomnia and Chronic Insomnia, run by University of Michigan 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 4 inclusion and 9 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 7 Nov 2017. 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. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. 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 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 30 Jul 2013). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

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.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Change From Baseline of Chamomile Extract on Measures of Sleep at Day 28. (time frame: baseline and day 28). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT01286324, which also lists 1 linked publication.

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 7 Nov 2017.

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