The Effect of Oxytocin on the Acquisition and Consolidation of Trauma-Associated Memories

August 19, 2018 updated by: Katharina Schultebraucks, Charite University, Berlin, Germany

The Effect of Oxytocin on the Acquisition and Consolidation of Trauma-Associated Memories: A Model to Understand the Development of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

The purpose of the study is to examine whether oxytocin and oxytocin receptor gene polymorphism affect the development of intrusive memories, a cardinal symptom of PTSD.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

220

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

      • Berlin, Germany, 12203
        • Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin

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 44 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • healthy female volunteers
  • German on a native level

Exclusion Criteria:

  • former or present disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-5)
  • any physical illnesses
  • any medication intake (except oral contraceptive)
  • history of traumatic experience, e.g. history of sexual abuse or rape
  • pregnancy or lactation period
  • follicular phase of menstrual cycle for all women not using oral contraceptives

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: Factorial Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Oxytocin and trauma film paradigm
Placebo Comparator: Placebo and trauma film paradigm
Placebo nasal spray

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Intrusive memories
Time Frame: four consecutive days
Influence of oxytocin on the development of intrusive memories measured with an intrusion diary
four consecutive days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Noradrenergic System (measured with salivary alpha-amylase - u/ml)
Time Frame: Day 1
Influence of oxytocin on the noradrenergic system measured with salivary alpha-amylase
Day 1
Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (measured with salivary cortisol - nmol/L)
Time Frame: Day 1
Influence of oxytocin on the HPA-axis measured with salivary cortisol
Day 1
Genetic polymorphism
Time Frame: four consecutive days
Influence of genetic polymorphism of the oxytocin receptor on intrusive memories measured with an intrusion diary
four consecutive days

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

  • Study Director: Stefan Roepke, PD Dr., Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin

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.

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)

January 15, 2017

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 30, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

June 30, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 18, 2017

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 23, 2017

First Posted (Estimate)

January 25, 2017

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 21, 2018

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 19, 2018

Last Verified

January 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • Charite2017-Oxytocin-Study

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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