Prolonged Exposure for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Among Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom (OIF/OEF) Personnel

Summary

The purpose of this study is 1) to evaluate whether massing 10 PE sessions in 2 weeks (massed trials; M-PE) is more efficacious than Minimal Contact control (MCC); 2) whether the massed sessions format retains the efficacy of treatment compared to 10 PE sessions spaced over 8 weeks (spaced trials; S-PE), and 3) to evaluate for the first time the efficacy of the 10 PE sessions delivered in 8 weeks in an active duty population by comparing it to an active comparison condition, Present-Centered Therapy (PCT).

Conditions

• Posttraumatic Stress Disorders
• Combat Disorders

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Prolonged Exposure Therapy - Massed

10 75-90 minute psychotherapy sessions, focused on gradually confronting distressing trauma-related memories and reminders. Sessions occur 5 days/week for two weeks.

BEHAVIORAL

Prolonged Exposure Therapy - Spaced

10 75-90 minute psychotherapy sessions, focused on gradually confronting distressing trauma-related memories and reminders. Sessions 1-3 occur in the first two weeks, Sessions 4-5 occur in Weeks 3-4, and Sessions 6-10 occur in Weeks 5-10.

BEHAVIORAL

Minimal Contact Control

Participants receive minimal contact for 4 weeks after randomization and thereafter are offered PE-Spaced or PE-Massed, according to their preference. Participants receive 10-15 minute phone calls once per week by the study therapist or independent evaluator in order to monitor their status and to provide support as needed.

BEHAVIORAL

Present-Centered Therapy

10 75-90 minute psychotherapy sessions, focused on identifying and solving day-to-day problems as they are brought up by the participants

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

  collaborator OTHER

• U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command

  collaborator FED

• University of Pennsylvania

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Edna B. Foa, Ph.D. · Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety, University of Pennsylvania

• Elna Yadin, Ph.D. · Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety, University of Pennsylvania

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

65 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2010-11-30

Primary Completion

2018-08-31

Completion

2018-08-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations