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Hair Cortisol Level as a Predictor of PTSD Development

NCT01804426 · Status: WITHDRAWN · Type: OBSERVATIONAL

Last updated 2016-04-20

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders.

As casualties of motor vehicle accidents, criminal acts or terrorism are arriving to the ER, it is almost impossible to conclude who will overcome his psychiatric trauma and will be able to return to his normal life course and who will be thrown out of his promising life trajectory.

Current attempts to identify those who are at the greatest risk are still unsatisfactory, which comprise a therapeutic dilemma, since the interventions used to ameliorate and prevent the occurrence of PTSD in a high-risk patient, might be counter-productive and even precipitate the emergence of PTSD in lower-risk patients.

Since PTSD is closely related to the "Fight, Flight or Freeze" reaction, it has much to do with the autonomic nervous system and the major stress hormone, cortisol. Despite many studies demonstrating the involvement of those factors in the development of PTSD, various attempts to profile the direction of the association between PTSD and cortisol abnormalities have yielded conflicting results.

The introduction of a novel method of assessing the excretion of cortisol using residues in the human hair shaft, has allowed an unprecedented evaluation of its activity over a prolonged period of time.

Using this novel method of cortisol assessment, the investigators aim to identify biomarkers that will be able to aid in the prediction of PTSD development ahead of symptoms emergence, and will enhance the understanding of the physiological mechanism involved and etiology of this disorder.

Conditions

  • Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Shalvata Mental Health Center

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Michael Lishner, MD, Prof · Meir Medical Center

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
50 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2013-03-31
Primary Completion
2015-07-31
Completion
2016-01-31

Countries

  • Israel

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT01804426 on ClinicalTrials.gov