Addition of Ondansetron to Ongoing Antipsychotic Treatment for Schizophrenia

July 20, 2021 updated by: University of Colorado, Denver

Atypical Antipsychotics and P50 Sensory Gating

This study will examine the effects of ondansetron on auditory nerve activity in people with schizophrenia who are being treated with new antipsychotics.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Schizophrenia is a devastating brain disorder. Most people with schizophrenia have difficulty filtering out unimportant auditory information. They have an inability to appropriately inhibit, or gate, sensory information that enters the ear. Standard treatments do not address this problem. When the drug ondansetron is taken in addition to typical antipsychotic drugs, P50 auditory gating improves. However, ondansetron has not been used with some of the newer, atypical antipsychotic drugs. This study will evaluate the effect of combining ondansetron with newer, atypical antipsychotic drugs on P50 auditory gating.

Participants in this double-blind study will be randomly assigned to receive either ondansetron or placebo for 3 months. Upon completion of the first 3 months, participants will be crossed over to receive the other treatment for an additional 3 months. All participants will also take an atypical antipsychotic drug, including olanzapine, quetiapine, or aripiprazole. Auditory gating will be assessed using computerized cognitive testing and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at baseline and Months 3 and 6. Vital signs and evoked potentials will be assessed at Weeks 1, 3, and 6. Clinical symptoms and cognitive abilities will also be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of ondansetron.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

8

Phase

  • Phase 3

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
    • Colorado
      • Denver, Colorado, United States, 80220
        • Denver VAMC

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 55 years (ADULT)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Meets DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia
  • Stable, chronic schizophrenia
  • Currently taking atypical medications
  • Use of effective form of contraception throughout study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of any alcohol or drug abuse within 3 months of study start date
  • Any other major neurological disorders
  • History of or current head trauma
  • Any medical conditions affecting the central nervous system
  • Current epilepsy, asthma, migraine headache, previous myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes, hypertension, narrow angle glaucoma, or neuromuscular illnesses
  • Pregnant

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: CROSSOVER
  • Masking: QUADRUPLE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Ondansetron followed by placebo
Participants will take ondansetron then placebo plus an atypical antipsychotic drug
Drug: Ondansetron followed by placebo
Participants will take 16mg of ondansetron daily for the first three months followed by 3 months of placebo. An atypical antipsychotic drug (olanzapine,quetiapine, or aripiprazole) will also be taken throughout the 6 months treatment period.
Other Names:
  • Zofran, Zuplenz
EXPERIMENTAL: Placebo followed by Ondansetron
Participants will take placebo then ondansetron plus an atypical antipsychotic drug
Drug: Placebo followed by Ondansetron
Participants will take placebo daily for the first three months followed by 3 months of 16mg of ondansetron daily. An atypical antipsychotic drug (olanzapine,quetiapine, or aripiprazole) will also be taken throughout the 6 months treatment period.
Other Names:
  • Zofran, Zuplenz

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
P50 Sensory Gating
Time Frame: Up to 3 hours
P50 Sensory Gating as measured by evoked potentials (response to stimuli, in this case, clicking sounds).The P50 potential was identified and measured using a computer algorithm. The amplitude of the P50 test wave was divided by the amplitude of the P50 conditioning wave, expressed as a percentage: the P50 ratio. Lower P50 ratios represent better outcomes.
Up to 3 hours
Cognitive Testing
Time Frame: Measured at Months 3 and 6
Measured at Months 3 and 6

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

University of Colorado, Denver

Collaborators

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Lawrence E. Adler, MD, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, VISN19 MIRECC

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

January 1, 2005

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

May 1, 2010

Study Completion (ACTUAL)

May 1, 2010

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 6, 2005

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 6, 2005

First Posted (ESTIMATE)

September 8, 2005

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

August 13, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 20, 2021

Last Verified

July 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 04-0255
  • DNBBS 73-MCR
  • R01MH050787 (NIH)
  • COMIRB # 04-0255

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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