Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder clinical trials at UCSF

This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of doxazosin will assess doxazosin's effectiveness for PTSD nightmares, subjective sleep quality, and non-nightmare PTSD symptoms in adult men and women veterans with full and partial-syndromal PTSD.

Sleep disturbance is a major problem in Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study will test a version of a sleep treatment that's been shown to be effective in the general population, with some changes to tailor it to the needs of Veterans with PTSD and sleep disturbance.

Cognitive processing therapy (CPT) and prolonged exposure therapy (PE) were widely disseminated as recommended posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatments. However, post-9/11 Veterans with PTSD rarely initiate CPT or PE, especially as an initial treatment. Little research has explored the combinations and sequences of psychosocial and medication treatments that Veterans receive ("treatment sequences"). One common and understudied treatment sequence begins with stabilization treatment, which is designed to prepare Veterans for CPT or PE. There is a significant research gap in understanding how treatment sequence affects initiation of CPT or PE. The proposed research is an innovative, mixed-methods approach to assessing the impact of variability in treatment sequence, including stabilization treatment, on initiation of CPT or PE and applying this knowledge by developing a health services intervention that facilitates timely transition to CPT or PE. Research aims can improve PTSD treatment by increasing initiation of and reducing disparities in CPT/PE.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a chronic, debilitating condition that disproportionately affects Veterans. Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy is a "gold standard" treatment for PTSD. However, approximately one-third of Veterans fail to receive an adequate dose of treatment because they prematurely drop out of PE therapy. There is also room to improve PE treatment outcomes. Consistent with the VA Office of Research and Development initiative to develop effective treatments for PTSD, the proposed randomized clinical trial will examine the ability of oxytocin (as compared with placebo) combined with PE to reduce PTSD symptom severity, improve the rate of PTSD symptom reduction, and to enhance PE treatment retention and adherence. This two-site study will leverage the investments made in the nationwide rollout off PE therapy and has the potential to significantly improve mental health care among Veterans, advance the science in this area, and identify mechanisms underlying positive PTSD treatment response. Participants may choose to complete this research study via home-based telemedicine (HBT) care (i.e. service delivery to patients in their homes using consumer friendly, video-conferencing technology). HBT sessions will be delivered via standard desk, laptop computer, tablet, or smartphone using VA approved applications. All procedures that take place via telemedicine will be performed and completed as though they were in-person/in-office

PTSD affects approximately 22% of Veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Symptoms of PTSD may include re-experiencing, avoidance of trauma reminders, negative thoughts or feelings, and hyperarousal, such as increased startle reactivity and disturbed sleep. Treatments for PTSD are based on fear extinction principles in which individuals are repeatedly exposed a feared cue in the absence of danger, resulting in diminishing physiological reactions, a process believed to underlie recovery from PTSD. Studies suggest that orexin, a wake-promoting neuropeptide, may enhance fear extinction. This study will examine whether suvorexant, a selective orexin-receptor antagonist, will enhance fear extinction in Veterans with PTSD and insomnia. Finding a role for orexins in fear extinction will support the rationale for its further evaluation in the treatment of PTSD. Suvorexant is an accessible, safe medication that has been well-established in treating insomnia. It has outstanding promise for treating common and distressing symptoms in Veterans with PTSD.