Study of Injectable Naltrexone and Oral Bupropion Among Cigarette Smokers With Schizophrenia

September 9, 2025 updated by: Jin Ho Yoon, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

Open-label Pilot Study of Injectable Naltrexone and Oral Bupropion Among Cigarette Smokers With Schizophrenia

The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility and safety of injectable naltrexone (NTX;380 mg) in conjunction with oral bupropion (BUP; 450 mg daily)NTX-BUP administration among individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders that smoke cigarettes and to evaluate change on smoking-related measures and symptoms of schizophrenia.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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 (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.
2

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.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • fluent in English;
  • Diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorder that is currently stable;
  • Report regular cigarette smoking, average cigarette per day ≥ 5 in the past 4 weeks, and present a breath CO≥10 ppm.
  • Meet subjective and objective (urinary drug screen) measures of non-opioid use.
  • If female, present a negative pregnancy test, not be currently breast feeding, and agree to use acceptable birth control methods and receive periodic pregnancy tests during the course of the study.
  • Able to give written informed consent
  • Obtain an Evaluation to Sign Consent (ESC) score above 10.

Exclusion Criteria.

  • Have suicidal or homicidal ideation requiring immediate attention.
  • Previous use of bupropion or naltrexone in the past 30 days.
  • Currently enrolled in treatment for tobacco use.
  • Meet Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5 )criteria for alcohol and other substance use disorders excluding nicotine and marijuana.
  • Report a history of epilepsy, seizure disorder or condition increasing risk of seizure, or head trauma with neurological sequelae.
  • Have a current eating disorder.
  • Be medically unstable or taking medications that are contraindicated with using naltrexone or bupropion.

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: Other
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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: Treatment
Drug: Naltrexone (Vivitrol)
At week 1 the Nurse Practitioner will administer extended-release naltrexone via intramuscular gluteal injection supplied as a standard single-use kit containing 380-mg vial of Vivitrol microspheres. Only one naltrexone injection will be administered over the course of the study
Drug: Bupropion
Oral bupropion will be titrated to 450 mg over the course of 3 days. One week's supply of the study medication will be dispensed at each visit. Cell-phone assisted remote observation of medication adherence (CAROMA) will be used to assess compliance. Following Week 3, participants will be provided with enough pills to titrate the dose of bupropion over a period of 4 days. Therefore, participants will receive bupropion pills 3 weeks plus 4 additional days to titrate down the dose.

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
Feasibility as assessed by the percentage of participants that enroll in the study
Time Frame: end of treatment (week 3)
end of treatment (week 3)
Percentage of participants that complete 3 weeks of treatment
Time Frame: end of treatment (week 3)
end of treatment (week 3)
Safety as assessed by the percentage of participants that show no serious adverse events
Time Frame: end of treatment (week 3)
end of treatment (week 3)

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
Change in number of cigarettes smoked per day (CPD)
Time Frame: Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
Change in smoking urges as assessed by the Questionnaire on Smoking Urges (QSU)
Time Frame: Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
This is a 10 item questionnaire and each is cored from 0(strongly disagree) to 10(strongly agree) for a maximum score of 100, higher score indicating more smoking urge
Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
Reduction in number of cigarettes consumed when price is at 0 as assessed by the Cigarette Purchasing Task (CPT)
Time Frame: Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
This will utilize a hypothetical purchasing task, which will assess hypothetical purchase and consumption of cigarettes as a function of increasing cigarette price.
Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
Change in psychiatric symptoms as assessed by the score on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS)
Time Frame: Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)
This is an 18 item questionnaire and each is scores from 1 (not present) to 7 (extremely severe),with a total score between 18 and 126, higher number indicating worse outcome
Baseline, end of treatment (week 3)

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.
The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

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: Jin H Yoon, PhD, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

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.
July 16, 2024

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.
December 4, 2024

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.
December 4, 2024

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 15, 2024

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 15, 2024

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.
April 18, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

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.
September 16, 2025

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.
September 9, 2025

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.
September 1, 2025

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.
  • HSC-MS-24-0024

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

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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