Classical Conditioning to Treat Allergic Airway Diseases

Most clinicians who care for patients with inflammatory airway diseases such as allergic rhinitis and asthma are aware of the negative effects of certain sights, sounds and smells that can precipitate clinical exacerbations in certain susceptible patients. This is thought to be due to subconscious associations between these observable stimuli paired and actual exposure to allergens that induce clinical symptoms. The severity and duration of these symptoms are typically related to levels of anxiety and/or depression in affected patients. Classical conditioning of the immune response has been described in many animal and some human studies in association with administration of immunosuppressive drugs. In successfully conditioned individuals, subsequent exposure to the conditioning stimulus alone produces immunosuppressive changes similar to those caused by the drugs themselves. Since disease exacerbating conditioning appears to be prevalent in allergic patients, these conditions make an excellent human model for understanding the relationships between classical conditioning, psychological stress (particularly anxiety and depression) and immune regulation. Thus this proposal will seek to examine the hypothesis that antiinflammatory effects of pharmacotherapeutic agents can be classically conditioned and are clinically effective due to changes in immunoregulatory imbalances known to occur in patients with allergic airway diseases. The effectiveness of this therapeutic approach will be significantly affected by levels of psychological stress and individual suggestibility. This will be investigated with the following Specific Aims: (1). Determine the relative effectiveness of classical conditioning by a novel gustatory stimulus paired with immunosuppressive doses of corticosteroid on in vivo and in vitro immune responses (allergen - specific vs. general) of patients before, during and after classical conditioning correlated with level of clinical response; (2) Determine the role of neuroendocrine mechanisms (particularly catecholamines) on the inducibility and duration of the conditioned immune responses; and (3) Investigate the influence of psychological stress levels (including anxiety and depression) and/or suggestibility on baseline immune changes, success and duration of the classical conditioning.

These data will help define parameters for classical conditioning in humans, establish a model to investigate mechanisms and serve as the basis for development of future interventional protocols for severe inflammatory diseases involving classical conditioning.

Study Overview

Study Type

Interventional

Phase

  • Not Applicable

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

    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • Recruiting
        • University of Texas Medical School
        • Contact:
          • Gaileen Marshall, MD, PhD
          • Phone Number: 713-500-6540

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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Current history of allergic airway disease confirmed by positive skin tests. Included will be only those who have never tasted licorice or do not like the taste of licorice.

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: Educational/Counseling/Training
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Masking: Single

Collaborators and Investigators

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

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 Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 25, 2002

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 25, 2002

First Posted (Estimate)

March 26, 2002

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

June 24, 2005

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 23, 2005

Last Verified

December 1, 2003

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • NCRR-M01RR02558-0180

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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