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Alcohol Use DisorderNCT05048758

Adverse Childhood Experiences in Alcohol Use Disorder

An observational study of Alcohol Use Disorder and Trauma, Psychological, run by Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim at 1 site in Germany.

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

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) and their relation to the development of an alcohol use disorder (AUD) will be measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 65 years
Conditions the study is for
Alcohol Use Disorder, Trauma, Psychological
How many people
43 participants
Where
1 siteGermany
Study dates
22 Nov 2021to 17 Jan 2024
Phase
Observational
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

Study population: Patients from the Addiction Clinic at the Central Institute of Mental Health (Mannheim, Germany), as well as residents predominantly from the Mannheim/Heidelberg area who answered an open call to participate in this study.

Who may be able to join

  • Male and female
  • Age between 18 and 65
  • Normal or correctable eyesight
  • Sufficient ability to communicate with the investigators, to answer questions in oral and written form
  • "Fully Informed Consent"
  • "Written Informed Consent"
  • Individuals with alcohol use disorder according to DSM-5 or 'heavy drinking' (alcohol intake > 40g/ more than 5 days (women) \& 60g/ more than 5 days (men) and varying levels of adverse childhood experiences

Who cannot join

  • Withdrawal of the declaration of consent
  • Exclusion criteria for an MRI scan (pregnancy, metal implants, etc.)
  • Severe internal, neurological and psychiatric comorbidities
  • Pharmacotherapy with psychoactive substances within the last 14 days (except treatment with SSRI/SNRIs for at least 28 days)
  • Axis-I disorder according to ICD-10 and DSM 5 (except tobacco and alcohol use disorder, substance abuse with less than 2(11) criteria according to DSM-5, mild depressive episode, adaptation disorder and specific phobia within the last 12 months)
  • Positive urin drug screening (cannabis, amphetamine, opiates, benzodiazepines, cocaine)
Show all 9Show fewer
  • Withdrawal symptoms (CIWA-R > 7)
  • Intoxication at time of investigation (breathalyzer > 0.3‰)
  • Suicidal tendency or potential danger for others

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Germany1 site
  • Klinik für Abhängiges Verhalten, Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit

    Mannheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, 68159

Other trials in Germany

About this study

Official title: Vulnerability for Alcohol Use Disorder After ACE: the Role of Stress Sensitivity, Emotion Processing, Cue Reactivity and Cognitive Functions in Relapse Risk

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) and their relation to the development of an alcohol use disorder (AUD) will be measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Read the detailed description

The aim of this study is to examine the impact of ACE on stress sensitivity, cue-reactivity, and emotion processing in individuals with AUD at a longitudinal level. For this, participants (excluding healthy controls) from the first project (see https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03758053) will be re-examined after 2 to 2.5 years to explore the involvement of these mechanisms in relation to (long-term) relapse risk, which is a central issue in substance use disorders. Furthermore, we will investigate cognitive functions, specifically response inhibition and working memory, in the relationship between ACE and AUD. Additional participants may be recruited to mitigate sample attrition from the first project and to achieve the desired sample size. To assess cognitive functions and data from new participants in relation to relapse risk, we will perform a 3-month follow-up.

Neural correlates of stress-sensitivity, emotion processing, alcohol cue-reactivity and cognitive functions will be assessed using fMRI. Furthermore, blood and saliva samples will be used to assess biological and physiological mechanisms (e.g. salivary cortisol level or genetic markers of AUD and possible gene-environment-interactions).

The current project is interested in the extent to which ACE severity modulates neural activation in specific brain regions during the execution of fMRI paradigms as well as alcohol-related measures (e.g., craving and alcohol consumption). Of particular interest is the question whether these neural and alcohol-related measures are associated with relapse risk.

55 individuals with AUD and varying levels of ACE will be examined using interviews, questionnaires, fMRI tasks as well as saliva and blood samples. Update from 29/03/2023: the relationships of interest will be examined using a dimensional approach to the predictor variable (ACE). Thus, participants will not be divided into two groups (no or mild ACE vs. moderate to severe ACE) as originally planned, but will instead be treated as one group with varying levels of ACE. The new sample size (n = 55) is based on an updated sample size calculation for a linear regression (two-tailed) using the following input parameters: f² = 0.15 (moderate effect size), alpha error = 0.05, and power = 80%. All ethical votes and informed consents of participants will be obtained according to the declaration of Helsinki.

Being tested
No intervention
Medical subject headings
Alcoholism, Psychological Trauma

What participants receive

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

  • No interventionOther

    Also called Observational study

    No intervention

Study groups in NCT05048758
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Individuals with AUD + varying levels of ACEIndividuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and varying levels of adverse childhood experiences (ACE)
Receives: Other: No intervention

What is being measured

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

  1. fMRI to assess group and within-subjects differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Stress-sensitivity

    Stress-sensitivity: Imaging Stress Task to assess neural activation patterns during mental arithmetic tasks with negative feedback

    Measured: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

  2. fMRI to assess group and within-subjects differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Emotion processing

    Emotion-processing: emotional face-/form-matching task to assess neural activation patters of emotion processing

    Measured: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

  3. fMRI to assess group and within-subjects differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Alcohol cue-reactivity

    Alcohol cue-reactivity: pictures of alcoholic beverages to assess neural alcohol-cue reactivity

    Measured: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

  4. fMRI to assess group differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Response inhibition

    Response inhibition: Stop Signal Task (variation of go/no-go) to assess response inhibition.

    Measured: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

  5. fMRI to assess group differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Working memory

    Working memory: n-back task (continuous performance) to assess working memory function.

    Measured: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

  6. Long-term alcohol consumption

    Self-report in longitudinal sample measured with the LDH interview

    Measured: 2 - 2.5 year follow-up after first project

  7. Short-term alcohol consumption

    Self-report in whole sample measured with the Form 90 interview

    Measured: 3-month follow-up after current project

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. Hormonal stress response using salivary cortisol level

    Collection of saliva on a subject's regular week-day for the individual's normal cortisol awakening response and circadian rhythm (basal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-function at 0, 0.5, 8 and 14 hours after wake-up).

    Cortisol awakening reaction, area under the curve and slope will therefore be calculated [nmol/L]

    Measured: Normal awakening response on a subject's regular week-day (0, 0.5, 8 and 14 hours after wake-up)

  2. Hormonal stress response using salivary cortisol level

    Time course of salivary cortisol level. Area under the curve and slope will be calculated [nmol/L]

    Measured: day of fMRI experiment, at -45, -22, -10 minutes before and 35, 45, 60, 75 and 90 minutes after onset of stress induction

  3. GWAS and especially glutamatergic, serotonergic single-nucleotide polymorphisms

    Genomic DNA using 40ml EDTA-blood

    Measured: Blood sample at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)

Timeline

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

  1. First posted17 Sep 2021
  2. Study start22 Nov 2021
  3. Primary completion17 Jan 2024
  4. Study completion17 Jan 2024

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Other
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrolment
43 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT05048758
Sponsor's protocol ID
GRK2350-B5-P2
Status last verified
Mar 2024
First submitted
8 Sep 2021
Last updated
29 Mar 2024
Results posted
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No

Publications

  • Turkmen C, Machunze N, Tan H, Gerhardt S, Kiefer F, Vollstadt-Klein S. Vulnerability for alcohol use disorder after adverse childhood experiences (AUDACE): protocol for a longitudinal fMRI study assessing neuropsychobiological risk factors for relapse. BMJ Open. 2022 Jun 30;12(6):e058645. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-058645.

    PubMed 35772833

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Alcohol Use Disorder and Trauma, Psychological, run by Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim at 1 site in Germany.

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 7 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 29 Mar 2024. 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 Germany. 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.

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.

What does the primary outcome measure?

fMRI to assess group and within-subjects differences in task-specific brain activation patterns: Stress-sensitivity (time frame: fMRI measurement at one day only (day of fMRI experiment)). The study lists 7 primary outcomes in all. 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 NCT05048758, 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 29 Mar 2024.

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