Enhancing Exposure Therapy for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Virtual Reality and Imaginal Exposure With a Cognitive Enhancer

Summary

The purpose of this study is to test the differences between four active treatment conditions for combat-related Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): virtual reality exposure therapy (VRE) or prolonged imaginal exposure therapy (PE), both with DCS or placebo, as well as to examine predictors for PTSD and response to treatment in active duty military personnel, veterans, and civilians who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Conditions

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Interventions

DRUG

DCS (D-Cycloserine ) + Prolonged Imaginal Exposure

50mg DCS (taken once a week on the day of the therapy session) + Prolonged Imaginal Exposure

DRUG

DCS (D-Cycloserine ) + Virtual Reality Exposure

50mg DCS (taken once a week on the day of the therapy session) + Virtual Reality Exposure

DRUG

Placebo + Prolonged Imaginal Exposure

Placebo (taken once a week on the day of the therapy session) + Prolonged Imaginal Exposure

DRUG

Placebo (sugar pill) + Virtual Reality Exposure

Placebo (taken once a week on the day of the therapy session) + Virtual Reality Exposure

Sponsors & Collaborators

• United States Department of Defense

  collaborator FED

• Emory University

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Southern California

  collaborator OTHER

• VA Long Beach Healthcare System

  collaborator FED

• National Intrepid Center of Excellence

  collaborator FED

• Weill Medical College of Cornell University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• JoAnn Difede, Ph.D. · Weill Medical College of Cornell University

• Barbara Rothbaum, Ph.D., ABPP · Emory University

• Skip Rizzo, Ph. D. · University of Southern California

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

TRIPLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

70 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2011-05-31

Primary Completion

2018-09-30

Completion

2018-09-30

Countries

• United States

Study Locations