PRevention Of Methamphetamine Use Among Postpartum Women Trial (PROMPT)

The PRevention Of Methamphetamine Use among Postpartum Women Trial (PROMPT) is randomized controlled trial of postpartum individuals with methamphetamine use disorder to 12 weeks of 200 mg oral micronized progesterone twice daily or placebo. The aims of this study are to assess the feasibility, safety and preliminary efficacy of micronized progesterone for the prevention of return to methamphetamine use. A secondary aim is to assess participant's salivary levels of allopregnanolone with methamphetamine cravings. This study has the potential to provide effective interventions to prevent methamphetamine use among postpartum women.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Methamphetamine-dependence; Postpartum Abstinence
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Progesterone; Drug: Placebo

Detailed Description

While substantial attention and resources have been directed at the opioid epidemic in the US, another deadly drug epidemic - methamphetamine use (MU) - has been evolving. While most pregnant women achieve abstinence by late pregnancy, the postpartum period is a particularly vulnerable time. Postpartum return to use is high and potentially deadly. Data from the Utah Maternal Mortality Review Committee indicate that from 2005-2016 (n=176), MU contributed to one out of every five deaths of pregnant and postpartum women; 85% of these deaths occurred in the postpartum period and, 70% of methamphetamine-related deaths also involved opioids. While medications for OUD reduce return to opioid use among postpartum women, similar interventions to reduce return to MU are lacking.

In developing novel interventions to address MU in this vulnerable population, it is critical to consider important hormonal changes that mediate drug cravings and place postpartum women at particular risk of return to MU. Among women, higher systemic levels of progesterone and its active metabolite allopregnanolone appear to attenuate drug craving, urges, and return to use. Postpartum women may be particularly sensitive to increased craving and urges given the precipitous post-delivery drop in endogenous progesterone and allopregnanolone levels. Supplementation of exogenous progesterone is a novel therapy that has shown promising results in decreasing return to use among women using cocaine, tobacco, and benzodiazepines. Among postpartum women who used cocaine in pregnancy, micronized progesterone (which metabolizes to allopregnanolone) was associated with a reduction in cocaine use in the first 12 weeks postpartum in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

The investigator's long-term goal is to advance the understanding of how pregnant and postpartum women's unique physiology impacts the trajectory of MUD and to apply this knowledge to developing novel interventions aimed at reducing MU in this population. The objectives of the PROMPT study is to determine: 1) the effect of micronized progesterone on return to MU among postpartum women with MUD, and, 2) determine the association between allopregnanolone levels and methamphetamine craving in this population. The central hypothesis is that micronized progesterone is a feasible, safe, and effective intervention that reduces the risk of return to MU among postpartum women with methamphetamine use disorder

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 34
• Phase: Early Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Utah
    • Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, 84132
      • University of Utah

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Meeting criteria for substance use disorder of methamphetamine in the six months prior to conception or during pregnancy
• No active methamphetamine use at time of enrollment or within past 4 weeks prior to enrollment by self-report or urine toxicology.
• If diagnosis of active opioid use disorder (OUD) and no use at time of enrollment or within past 4 weeks prior to enrollment by self-report or urine toxicology and on stable dose of medication for OUD (methadone, buprenorphine, naltrexone) for two weeks prior to enrollment in order to allow for postpartum dose adjustments.
• Intrauterine device or barrier method for contraception during the study period
• End of pregnancy within past 12 weeks
• Residing within 100 miles of study site
• Stable on allowable psychiatric medications including selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, and mood stabilizers for four weeks prior to enrollment

Exclusion Criteria:

• Major medical illness in which progesterone may be contraindicated (significant liver disease, history of thrombophlebitis, stroke, heart disease, suspected or known malignancy, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolus, clotting or bleeding disorders)
• Any of the following laboratory abnormalities (within 2 weeks of screening and enrollment)
• Active hepatic dysfunction
• Anemia defined as hemoglobin less than 8 g/dL indicating anemia
• Renal impairment defined as creatinine greater than 2.0 mg/dL
• Hypothyroidism defined as TSH greater than 5 mIU/L
• Abnormal vital signs at baseline visit
• Allergy to micronized progesterone or ingredients in placebo including peanut oil, gelatin or cellulose
• Self-reported progestin-containing oral or depot containing contraceptives intolerance.
• Do not speak English or Spanish
• Taking potent inhibitors of CY P450 3A4 including clarithromycin, erythromycin, diltiazem, itraconazole, ketoconazole, ritonavir, verapamil and goldenseal.
• Severe depressive symptoms
• Active suicidality
• Current or past history of psychosis, suicidal attempts or psychiatric hospitalizations
• Current or pending incarceration
• Active alcohol use disorder within past six months
• Use of the following concomitant drugs, supplements and over-the-counter medications in the two week prior to enrollment: stimulants, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, non-benzodiazepine hypnotics, orexin antagonists, first generation anti-histamine, herbal sedatives, methaqualone and analogues, skeletal muscle relaxants, opioids (other than methadone or buprenorphine), anti-psychotic medications, certain anti-depressants or other medication with significant sedative properties as evaluated by the PI and/or study clinician.
• Progestin containing medications including oral hormonal contraceptive methods

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Triple

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Progesterone Arm; Randomized to receive progesterone	Drug: Progesterone; Randomized to 400 mg (200 mg twice daily) oral micronized progesterone daily
Placebo Comparator: Placebo Arm; Randomized to receive placebo	Drug: Placebo; Randomized to placebo twice daily

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Successful Recruitment and Randomization of 40 Postpartum Women Into the PROMPT Study	Recruit and enroll 40 eligible women (postpartum individuals with MUD) in a 15 month period from time of study initiation.	15 months after study initiation

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of Participants With Severe Medication Side Effects	Number of enolled participants with Severe Medication Side Effects	Baseline and 12 weeks
Assess Depression and Suicidality Status in Enrolled Participants	A lower score on the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) scale indicates a better outcome. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is a 10-item screening tool (maximum score 30) used to identify perinatal depression, where scores 0-9 indicate minimal depression, scores of 10 or higher typically indicate possible depression, and scores of 13 or greater strongly suggest a depressive illness.	Baseline and 12 weeks
Assess Anxiety Status in Enrolled Participants	Assess anxiety status in enrolled participants using validated surveys/ GAD-7 The GAD-7 (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7) is a 7-item, self-reported questionnaire used to measure anxiety severity over the past two weeks. Scores range from 0 to 21, categorized as mild (0-4), moderate (5-9), moderately severe (10-14), and severe (15-21) anxiety. A score of 10 or higher is the typical cutoff for identifying clinical anxiety	Baseline and 12 weeks
Difference in Tobacco Use From Baseline	Secondarily we assessed the association between the exposures of doses of progesterone administered and tobacco use.	Baseline and 12 weeks
Assess Return to Methamphetamine Use (MU) in Enrolled Participants	Assess the efficacy of micronized progesterone to decrease return to methamphetamine use (MU) among postpartum women with methamphetamine use disorder. Return to use will be defined as either self-reported MU or positive urine toxicology result. Results will be compared between placebo and active ingredient groups.	Baseline and 12 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Utah
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Marcela Smid, MD, University of Utha

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Forray A, Merry B, Lin H, Ruger JP, Yonkers KA. Perinatal substance use: a prospective evaluation of abstinence and relapse. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2015 May 1;150:147-55. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.02.027. Epub 2015 Mar 3.
• Smid MC, Stone NM, Baksh L, Debbink MP, Einerson BD, Varner MW, Gordon AJ, Clark EAS. Pregnancy-Associated Death in Utah: Contribution of Drug-Induced Deaths. Obstet Gynecol. 2019 Jun;133(6):1131-1140. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000003279.
• Jones HE, Kaltenbach K, Heil SH, Stine SM, Coyle MG, Arria AM, O'Grady KE, Selby P, Martin PR, Fischer G. Neonatal abstinence syndrome after methadone or buprenorphine exposure. N Engl J Med. 2010 Dec 9;363(24):2320-31. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1005359.
• Wiegand SL, Stringer EM, Stuebe AM, Jones H, Seashore C, Thorp J. Buprenorphine and naloxone compared with methadone treatment in pregnancy. Obstet Gynecol. 2015 Feb;125(2):363-368. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000000640.
• Battle DE. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Codas. 2013;25(2):191-2. doi: 10.1590/s2317-17822013000200017. No abstract available.
• Ellis MS, Kasper ZA, Cicero TJ. Twin epidemics: The surging rise of methamphetamine use in chronic opioid users. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018 Dec 1;193:14-20. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.08.029. Epub 2018 Oct 10.
• Kuo CJ, Liao YT, Chen WJ, Tsai SY, Lin SK, Chen CC. Causes of death of patients with methamphetamine dependence: a record-linkage study. Drug Alcohol Rev. 2011 Nov;30(6):621-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1465-3362.2010.00255.x. Epub 2010 Oct 18.
• Chen LH, Hedegaard H, Warner M. Drug-poisoning Deaths Involving Opioid Analgesics: United States, 1999-2011. NCHS Data Brief. 2014 Sep;(166):1-8.
• Hedegaard H, Minino AM, Warner M. Drug Overdose Deaths in the United States, 1999-2018. NCHS Data Brief. 2020 Jan;(356):1-8.
• Yonkers KA, Forray A, Nich C, Carroll KM, Hine C, Merry BC, Shaw H, Shaw J, Sofuoglu M. Progesterone Reduces Cocaine Use in Postpartum Women with a Cocaine Use Disorder: A Randomized,Double-Blind Study. Lancet Psychiatry. 2014 Oct 1;1(5):360-367. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(14)70333-5.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 4, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 30, 2024
• Study Completion (Actual): May 30, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 9, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 18, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): November 19, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 3, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 1, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Pregnancy; Postpartum
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavior; Sexual Behavior; Sexual Abstinence; Hormones; Hormones, Hormone Substitutes, and Hormone Antagonists; Polycyclic Compounds; Pregnanes; Steroids; Fused-Ring Compounds; Gonadal Steroid Hormones; Gonadal Hormones; Pregnenediones; Pregnenes; Corpus Luteum Hormones; Progesterone Congeners; Progesterone
• Other Study ID Numbers: 138663

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