Acupuncture for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Among Military Personnel

January 11, 2012 updated by: Charles Engel, Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine

Acupuncture for the Treatment of Trauma Survivors

The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of acupuncture as a treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among military personnel.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Untreated Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) leads to decreased force readiness and increased health care utilization. Yet, service members with the disorder may be resistant to traditional treatments or find them undesirable because of side-effects, stigma, and long-term commitment. Acupuncture, which has few known side effects, holds promise as an effective treatment option for PTSD. Acupuncture has been shown to improve well-being and has been successfully used to treat stress, anxiety and pain conditions. In order to test the efficacy of acupuncture for treating the symptoms of PTSD-measured by the PTSD Checklist (PCL)-a 12-week, randomized, waitlist-controlled trial will be conducted using a sample of 75 active duty military personnel. Participants will receive an eight-session acupuncture treatment, and will be evaluated throughout the study by way of clinical assessments and an independent assessing acupuncturist.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
55

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20889
        • Deployment Health Clinical Center, WRNMMC/USUHS Dept. of Psychiatry

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 60 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Active duty military personnel
  • Criteria met for PTSD based on Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) interview
  • A stable medication dosing regimen or therapeutic treatment schedule for at least eight (8) weeks prior to beginning the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Acupuncture treatment within the previous 6 months
  • Pain greater than or equal to level 8 on the Numeric Rating Scale for Pain
  • Significant head injury with loss of consciousness greater than 1 hour
  • Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus: fasting blood glucose >180 mg/dl
  • Unstable or uncontrolled endocrine disorders, thyroid disease, renal failure, anemia, hemorrhagic diathesis, renovascular disease, Cushing's disease, or hyperaldosteronism
  • Unwillingness on the part of participants to complete all study visits and/or the daily Life Chart
  • Pregnancy
  • Scheduled surgery during the treatment phase of the study
  • Medical instability sufficient to warrant inpatient treatment in the medical or intensive care units
  • Psychiatric symptoms sufficient to warrant inpatient treatment by the clinical care team
  • Psychosis within the past two years
  • A traumatic experience, as defined by the DSM-IV criterion A for ASD/PTSD, within the past 30 days

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: Acupuncture
Procedure: Acupuncture, using Chinese Medicine methodology
4 weeks of 2/week treatments (8 total); 4 standardized and 4 individualized treatments
No Intervention: Wait List
Usual Care

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
PTSD Checklist (PCL)
Time Frame: baseline, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months
The PCL is a widely used measure of PTSD symptom presence and severity among veterans. It is a 17-item measure that assesses the symptoms of PTSD listed in the DSM-IV. Respondents indicate on a 5-point scale (1-5) the degree to which they have been bothered by each symptom in the past month. The PCL-M yields a total severity score ranging from 17 to 85.
baseline, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale
Time Frame: baseline, 3 months
The CAPS is a 30 item, clinician-administered structured interview that is often referred to as the "gold standard" for diagnosing PTSD. The CAPS measures PTSD and ASD symptoms (based on the DSM-IV symptom criteria) related to up to three traumatic events. Higher scores indicate more intense and more frequent symptoms of PTSD, while lower scores represent the absence of or less intense, less frequent symptoms of PTSD. The CAPS was used in this study as the primary diagnostic tool for PTSD at entry into the study and at the three-month follow-up, and will help validate scores on the PCL.
baseline, 3 months
The Trauma History Questionnaire
Time Frame: baseline, 3 months
]. This 24 item self-report questionnaire was designed to assess lifetime history of exposure to 23 potentially traumatic experiences including crime, disaster, and physical and sexual assaults It also contains an open-ended question for specifying other extraordinarily stressful situations or events. The data acquired using this instrument will be used to provide general data about the study sample. Additionally, the THQ will be administered at the three-month follow-up to assess the occurrence of traumatic events during the course of the study.
baseline, 3 months
SF-36-Revised
Time Frame: baseline, 3 months
The SF-36-Revised measures eight general health-related concepts, which have been shown to load into distinct physical and mental health clusters in factor analytic studies in the general population. The eight scales within the SF-36-Revised are: Physical Functioning, Role-Physical, Bodily Pain, General Health, Vitality, Social Functioning, Role-Emotional and Mental Health (psychological distress and psychological well-being).
baseline, 3 months
Beck Depression Inventory
Time Frame: baseline, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months
The BDI-II is a 21-item self-report measure that evaluates symptoms of depression. Each item is scored on a scale from 0 to 3. Total scores on BDI range from 0 to 63, with scores of less than 15 indicating normal to mild depression, scores of 15 to 30 indicating moderate depression, and scores above 30 constituting severe depression.
baseline, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months
Numeric Rating Scale for Pain
Time Frame: baseline, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months
The NRS directs participants to rate pain intensity using three, 11-point, 0 ("no pain") to 10 ("pain as bad as you can imagine") numeric rating scales. Instructions ask participants to "Please rate your pain by indicating the number that best describes your pain on average in the last 24 hours", pain "at its worst", and "pain at its least". The NRS was used in this study to evaluate the effect of acupuncture on comorbid symptoms of pain.
baseline, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months
PTSD Life Chart Method (PTSD-LCM)
Time Frame: tracked daily throughout 3-month study period
The life-chart method is a means of illustrating the relationship of life events and treatment interventions to the longitudinal course of illness. The PTSD-LCM was designed to prospectively track primary symptoms of PTSD as well as comorbid symptoms on a daily basis. The PTSD-LCM incorporates the Ecological Momentary Assessment method in a paper-and-pencil format.
tracked daily throughout 3-month study period
Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test
Time Frame: baseline, 3 months
The AUDIT was developed by the World Health Organization to identify hazardous and harmful alcohol use in adults and to serve as a brief (10-item) screening instrument for excessive drinking. It was intended to identify a broad spectrum of problem drinkers and distinguish them from both hospitalized alcoholics and from normal drinkers. The instrument was modified for our purposes to inquire about participants' behavior since returning from deployment. It was used to evaluate the effect of acupuncture on comorbid symptoms of alcohol abuse.
baseline, 3 months
Diagnostic evaluation by blind assessing acupuncturist
Time Frame: baseline, 1 month
The Assessing Acupuncturist examined the patient using TCM diagnostic criteria before the first treatment, after the first four (standardized) treatments, and again at the conclusion of treatment (after the four individualized treatments). The Assessing Acupuncturist will be blind to the treatment conditions. Identical diagnostic procedures were used for patients in the treatment group and in the wait list control group. Evaluations by the Assessing Acupuncturist were be audio-recorded to ensure that they remain blind to the treatment conditions.
baseline, 1 month

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Federal government (congressional allocation)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Charles C Engel, MD, MPH, USUHS Dept. of Psychiatry/DoD Deployment Health Clinical Center, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 1, 2006

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 1, 2007

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 1, 2007

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
April 27, 2006

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 27, 2006

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
May 3, 2006

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 12, 2012

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 11, 2012

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2012

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • HO0001-051-0002

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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