Mental Effects of Analgesic Drugs: Paracetamol and Ibuprofen (MEAD)

June 5, 2020 updated by: Prof. Jürgen Brockmöller

Double Blinded Randomized Placebo Controlled Study on Mental Effects of Analgesic Drugs

The objective of the present study is to study paracetamol effects on social pain and empathy under standardized international conditions (ICH-GCP) for planning, conduction and reporting of clinical pharmaceutical studies in humans. The study included MRI imaging of brain activity, analysis of genomic biomarkers potentially explaining interindividual variation. It is controversial whether the effects are of immediate nature or develop during a period of about 10 days. Therefore, the study is separated into two study phases. Single dosing (SD) is applied in study phase 1 and multiple-dosing (MD) in study phase 2. The study compares paracetamol with placebo and in the study phase 1 also with ibuprofen as analgetically active control.

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.
150

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 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.
  • Name: Jürgen Brockmöller, Prof.
  • Phone Number: +49 (0) 551 39-53 11
  • Email: jbrockm@gwdg.de

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

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 50 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Written informed consent obtained prior to study.
  2. Willingness to meet the study instructions and to co-operate with the study personal.
  3. No clinically relevant pathological findings in any of the investigations at the screening visit; minor deviations of laboratory values from the normal range may be accepted if judged by the investigator to have no clinical relevance.
  4. Body weight not less than 48 kg and body mass index (BMI) not less than 17 kg/m² and not greater than 32 kg/m².

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Pacemaker devices, implantable or external ones.
  2. Involvement in the planning and conduct of the study (applies to staff directly employed at the study site / department).
  3. Known pregnancy or lactation period.
  4. History of alcohol and / or drug abuse and / or any abusive use of medicaments.
  5. Any disease affecting liver or kidney or impairment of the liver or kidney-function.
  6. History of severe hypersensitivity reactions, anaphylaxis, psychiatric or neurologic disorder.

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: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

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: Paracetamol
Study phase 1 (single dosing): 1000 mg once. Study phase 2 (multiple dosing): 1000 mg twice daily for a minimum of 12 and a maximum of 14 days.
Drug: Paracetamol
Paracetamol oral tablet
Other Names:
  • Acetaminophen
Active Comparator: Ibuprofen
Study phase 1 (single dosing): 800 mg once.
Drug: Ibuprofen
Ibuprofen oral tablet
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Study phase 1 (single dosing): Once. Study phase 2 (multiple dosing): Twice daily for a minimum of 12 and a maximum of 14 days.
Drug: Placebo oral tablet
Sugar pill manufactured to mimic the Paracetamol and Ibuprofen.

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
Effect of paracetamol and ibuprofen on social pain and empathy
Time Frame: 8 hours
Primary outcome is defined as the composite score of standardized emotional scenarios and the hurt feeling scale.
8 hours
Effect of paracetamol on social pain and empathy
Time Frame: 14 days
Primary outcome is defined as the composite score of standardized emotional scenarios and the hurt feeling scale.
14 days

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
Psychological effects of paracetamol and ibuprofen
Time Frame: 8 hours
Interindividual variation of analgesic effects measured using fMRI. MRI will be performed to reflect differences in brain activation by Psychometric test.
8 hours
Pharmacokinetics effects of paracetamol and ibuprofen
Time Frame: 8 hours
Blood samples for determination of study drug concentrations in plasma will be taken at different time-point. This will be used to calculate Maximum Plasma Concentration (Cmax).
8 hours
Pharmacogenes roles in paracetamol and ibuprofen metabolism
Time Frame: 8 hours
Genetic analysis of relevant genes responsible for paracetamol and ibuprofen Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion (ADME).Healthy volunteers will provide a blood sample for molecular genetic analyses of the various candidate genes, e.g. drug transporters and metabolizing enzymes. This will shed light on the interindividual variation of analgesic effects.
8 hours
Psychological effects of paracetamol
Time Frame: 14 days
Interindividual variation of analgesic effects measured using fMRI. MRI will be performed to reflect differences in brain activation by Psychometric test.
14 days
Pharmacokinetics effects of paracetamol
Time Frame: 14 days
Blood samples for determination of study drug concentrations in plasma will be taken at different time-point. This will be used to calculate Maximum Plasma Concentration (Cmax).
14 days
Pharmacogenes roles in paracetamol metabolism
Time Frame: 14 days
Genetic analysis of relevant genes responsible for paracetamol Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion (ADME). Healthy volunteers will provide a blood sample for molecular genetic analyses of the various candidate genes, e.g. drug transporters and metabolizing enzymes. This will shed light on the interindividual variation of analgesic effects.
14 days

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.
Prof. Jürgen Brockmöller

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.
University Hospital Ulm

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 (Actual)

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.
November 7, 2019

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.
March 1, 2021

Study Completion (Anticipated)

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 1, 2021

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).
February 18, 2020

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.
June 5, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

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.
June 11, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

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 11, 2020

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 5, 2020

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, 2020

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.
  • 2018-004187-60

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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