Identifying and Treating Depression in the Orthopaedic Trauma Population

The goal of this trial is to pilot a way for orthopaedic surgeons to safely screen for depression and provide treatment for depression with medication. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. What are the outcomes of patients who screen positive for depressive symptoms and are prescribed either an Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) or serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI).
2. What are the outcomes of patients who screen positive for depressive symptoms and choose not to pursue treatment with medication?

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Depression
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Fluoxetine 20 MG; Drug: Duloxetine 30 MG; Other: Observation

Detailed Description

Depression is common among orthopaedic trauma patients and associated with worsened outcomes including pain, opioid consumption, patient-reported outcomes ,complications, and length of stay. Addressing depression, therefore, should lead to improved outcomes. Orthopaedic surgeons may believe treating depression is outside their scope or that they lack tools to address depressive symptoms. In fact, only 45% of surgeons report they are likely to screen patients, and only 27% are likely to refer patients for psychological treatment.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 100
• Phase: Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Erica Grochowski, MPH; Phone Number: 704-403-4980; Email: Erica.Grochowski@advocatehealth.org

Study Locations

• United States
  • North Carolina
    • Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States, 27157
      • Recruiting
      • Wake Forest University Health Sciences
      • Contact: Erica Grochowski, MPH; Phone Number: 704-403-4980; Email: Erica.Grochowski@atriumhealth.org

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients presenting to an Orthopaedic trauma clinic for the first time following operative extremity fracture or any pelvis fracture
• A score of greater than or equal to 5 on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) at first post- operative visit
• Age 18 or older
• Speak English or Spanish

Exclusion Criteria:

• Currently taking medication to treat depression
• Contraindication/allergy to one of the study medications
• Bipolar disorder of psychotic disorder
• Endorse suicidal ideation

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI); Fluoxetine, 20mg once daily	Drug: Fluoxetine 20 MG; Fluoxetine 20 mg once daily; Other Names: Prozac Weekly, Sarafem, Prozac
Experimental: serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI); Duloxetine, 30mg once daily	Drug: Duloxetine 30 MG; Duloxetine 30 mg once daily; Other Names: Irenka and Cymbalta
Other: Observational; Referral to behavioral health per standard practice and provision of resources for strategices to address depressive symptoms.	Other: Observation; Referral to behavioral health and resources for addressing depressive symptoms; Other Names: Referral to behavioral health and resources

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Depressive Symptom Scores	Improvement in depressive symptoms, indication by either remission (PHQ-9 score <5) or a 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a self-report tool that incorporates DSM-IV depression diagnostic criteria with other leading major depressive symptoms. The too rates the frequency of the symptoms which factors into the scoring severity index. PHQ-9 scores of 5, 10, 15, and 20 represent mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression.	Baseline
Depressive Symptom Scores	Improvement in depressive symptoms, indication by either remission (PHQ-9 score <5) or a 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a self-report tool that incorporates DSM-IV depression diagnostic criteria with other leading major depressive symptoms. The too rates the frequency of the symptoms which factors into the scoring severity index. PHQ-9 scores of 5, 10, 15, and 20 represent mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression.	Month 3
Depressive Symptom Scores	Improvement in depressive symptoms, indication by either remission (PHQ-9 score <5) or a 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a self-report tool that incorporates DSM-IV depression diagnostic criteria with other leading major depressive symptoms. The too rates the frequency of the symptoms which factors into the scoring severity index. PHQ-9 scores of 5, 10, 15, and 20 represent mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression.	Month 6
Depressive Symptom Scores	Improvement in depressive symptoms, indication by either remission (PHQ-9 score <5) or a 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a self-report tool that incorporates DSM-IV depression diagnostic criteria with other leading major depressive symptoms. The too rates the frequency of the symptoms which factors into the scoring severity index. PHQ-9 scores of 5, 10, 15, and 20 represent mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression.	Month 9
Depressive Symptom Scores	Improvement in depressive symptoms, indication by either remission (PHQ-9 score <5) or a 50% reduction in PHQ-9 score. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) is a self-report tool that incorporates DSM-IV depression diagnostic criteria with other leading major depressive symptoms. The too rates the frequency of the symptoms which factors into the scoring severity index. PHQ-9 scores of 5, 10, 15, and 20 represent mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe depression.	Year 1

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Adherence to Treatment Percentage	Adherence to treatment and side effects or adverse events associated with the medications will be collected using patient logs, study visit questionnaires, and the medical record (i.e., number of prescriptions filled).	Months 3, 6, and 12
Utilization of non-pharmaceutical tools and resources Percentage	Engagement with behavioral health resources will be collected using patient logs, study visit questionnaires, and the medical record (i.e., number of visits with Behavioral Health).	Months 3, 6, and 12
Patient Reported Outcome Measures - PROMIS-29 Scores	The PROMIS-29 scales will be scored using a T-score metric method. A score of 50 points represents the population average for each scale, and 10 points represent one standard deviation. Higher scores mean a higher level of disability.	Months 3, 6, and 12
Patient Reported Outcome Measures - Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire Scores	The Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire measures how work productivity and activities are impaired by a specific health condition or disease. Scores are expressed as a percentage of impairment/productivity loss, a high score indicates greater impairment.	Months 3, 6, and 12
Patient Reported Outcome Measures - Brief Pain Inventory Scores	Assesses the severity of pain and the impact of pain on daily functions. Assesses the severity of and impact of pain on daily function. Patients are asked to rate their current symptoms, average experiences of pain, and the minimum and maximum intensities of their symptoms on scales that range from 1-10. A total pain severity score can be found by averaging these items or a single items can be treated as the primary outcome. Higher scores indicate greater severity and more interference.	Months 3, 6, and 12
Healthcare Utilization - The number of hospitalizations and ED visits	The number of hospitalizations and ED visits	Months 3, 6, and 12
Patient Reported Outcome Measures: Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9)	A PHQ-9 score total of 0-4 points equals "normal" or minimal depression. Scoring between 5-9 points indicates mild depression, 10-14 points indicates moderate depression, 15-19 points indicates moderately severe depression, and 20 or more points indicates severe depression. The higher the score, the more symptoms of depression experienced, and the more severe the depression is.	Months 3, 6, and 12
Patient Reported Outcome Measures - Veterans RAND 12 Item Health Survey (VR-12)	Measures health related quality of life across 7 domains. The answers are summarized into two scores - a Physical Component Score and a Mental Component Score.	Months 3, 6, and 12
Qualitative Interview Information	Patients in the observational arm will participate in semi-structured interviews. Interviews will be recorded and transcribed verbatim within one week. Field notes will be written within one week of each interview, and the interview guide will be revised as appropriate.	One time between 6-12 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Wake Forest University Health Sciences
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Meghan K Wally, PhD, Wake Forest University Health Sciences

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 25, 2025
• Primary Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 28, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 28, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): August 4, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 22, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 21, 2026
• Last Verified: April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior; Depression; Delivery of Health Care; Health Care Quality, Access, and Evaluation; Sulfur Compounds; Organic Chemicals; Heterocyclic Compounds, 1-Ring; Heterocyclic Compounds; Investigative Techniques; Methods; Amines; Health Care Economics and Organizations; Thiophenes; Health Planning; Propylamines; Duloxetine Hydrochloride; Fluoxetine; Observation; Health Resources
• Other Study ID Numbers: IRB00096491; MSKRSH040123 (Other Identifier: Atrium Health)

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.: Yes