Reducing Reconsolidation of Trauma Memories With Propranolol

June 23, 2014 updated by: Alain Brunet, Ph.D., Douglas Mental Health University Institute

Reduction of the Reconsolidation of the Trauma Memory With Propranolol

The purpose of this study is to test whether propranolol is capable of reducing subsequent physiological trauma-related conditioned responses, as well as self-reported post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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.

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 (Anticipated)

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.
76

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 2

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Canada
    • Quebec
      • Verdun, Quebec, Canada, H4H 1R3
        • Recruiting
        • Douglas Mental Health University Institute
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Alain Brunet, Ph.D.

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 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Suffer from chronic PTSD for at least 6 consecutive months;
  • Obtain a score of 33 or more on the Impact of Events Scale-Revised:
  • For participants aged 40 years: accept to undergo an electrocardiogram assessment. The results of the electrocardiogram must be normal;
  • Accept to not commence taking new medications on a regular basis during the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Hypotension;
  • Cardiac rhythm below 55 beats per minute;
  • Medical conditions that contraindicates the administration of propranolol;
  • Previous adverse reaction to, or non-compliance with, beta-blockers;
  • Current use of medication that may involve potentially dangerous interactions with propranolol;
  • Any medication that can have an impact on cardiac rhythm;
  • Women who are breast feeding;
  • Past or present bipolar disorder or psychosis,
  • Present substance abuse or dependence, suicidal ideation;
  • Participating in psychotherapy other than support psychotherapy;
  • An average score above 20 on the Dissociative Experience Scale.

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: Triple

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.
Experimental: Propranolol + Memory Reactivation
This arm involves recalling the traumatic event after administration of propranolol
Drug: Propranolol
1mg per Kg (participant weight)
Experimental: Placebo + Memory reactivation
This arm involves recalling the traumatic event after administration of a placebo
Drug: Propranolol
1mg per Kg (participant weight)
Experimental: Placebo + No Memory Reactivation
This arm involves administration of a placebo without recalling the traumatic event
Drug: Propranolol
1mg per Kg (participant weight)
Experimental: Propranolol + No Memory Reactivation
This arm involves administration of propranolol without recalling the traumatic event
Drug: Propranolol
1mg per Kg (participant weight)
Other: Open-label Propranolol + Memory Reactivation
All participants terminating the double-blind phase of the study will receive open-label reconsolidation blockade treatment with propranolol combined with recall of the traumatic event for six weeks.
Drug: Short acting + long acting propranolol + memory reactivation
After completing the double-blind phase of the study, participants will receive short acting propranolol 1mg/kg (patient weight) + long acting propranolol (1 or 1.5 mg/kg) followed by memory reactivation. Dose level for the long-acting propranolol will be randomly assigned across participants.

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
Time Frame
Electromyogram
Time Frame: Two weeks post-treatment
Two weeks post-treatment
Heart rate
Time Frame: Two weeks post-treatment
Two weeks post-treatment
Skin conductance
Time Frame: Two weeks post-treatment
Two weeks post-treatment

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
PTSD symptom levels
Time Frame: 2 to 26 weeks
PTSD symptom levels will be assessed 2 to 26 weeks after randomization
2 to 26 weeks
Quality of life
Time Frame: 2 to 26 weeks
Quality of life assessments will be conducted 2 to 26 weeks following randomization
2 to 26 weeks
Memory Experience
Time Frame: 2 to 26 weeks
The Memory Experiences Questionnaire will be administered from 2 to 26 weeks following randomization
2 to 26 weeks
Psychophysiological assessments
Time Frame: 26 weeks
Psychophysiological assessments will be repeated 26 weeks following randomization
26 weeks

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.
Douglas Mental Health University Institute

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.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

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: Alain Brunet, Ph.D., Douglas Institute Research Centre

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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, 2011

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

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.
January 1, 2015

Study Completion

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.
December 7, 2022

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).
March 31, 2011

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.
May 5, 2011

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 6, 2011

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.
June 24, 2014

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.
June 23, 2014

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.
June 1, 2014

More Information

Terms related to this study

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.
  • 08-44

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

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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