Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD and Opioid Use Disorder

Summary

Among patients with opioid use disorder (OUD), 90% report lifetime trauma exposure and 33% meet criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The co-occurrence of OUD and PTSD is associated with worse mental health and opioid agonist treatment (OAT) outcomes relative to either diagnosis alone. Prolonged exposure therapy (PET) is an efficacious cognitive-behavioral treatment for reducing PTSD severity. Although preliminary findings indicate that PET may reduce PTSD symptom severity among patients receiving treatment for concomitant OUD, it is unclear to what extent improvements were a function of PET versus the effects of OAT itself. Therefore, the question of whether OAT alone may attenuate PTSD symptoms in the absence of intensive cognitive-behavioral therapy remains unanswered.

In this 12-week trial, we aim to investigate the contribution of PET above and beyond OAT alone for reducing PTSD symptoms among adults with concurrent PTSD and OUD. Participants will be randomized to one of three conditions: (a) OAT as usual, (b) OAT + PET, or (c) OAT + Enhanced PET (OAT+PET+). Those randomized to OAT as usual will continue to receive standard buprenorphine or methadone treatment from their current treatment provider and complete assessments of PTSD symptom severity, psychosocial functioning and drug use at intake and Study Weeks 4, 8, and 12. In addition to receiving OAT and completing monthly assessments, OAT+PET participants will receive PET consisting of 12 weekly, individual sessions with a trained therapist. Finally, OAT+PET+ participants will receive the procedures noted above for the OAT+PET group plus monetary incentives delivered contingent upon completion of PET sessions. Given the poor PET adherence rates reported among patients with substance use disorders, the use of incentives will ensure that we evaluate PET effects among patients who receive a sufficient dose of therapy. The proposed study design will permit us to disentangle the effects of PET from the effects of OAT alone while also including experimental conditions that reflect real-world practice. Taken together, this project will produce important new scientific and clinically-relevant information related to the mechanisms through which OAT and PET promote reductions in PTSD symptomatology in a highly vulnerable clinical population.

Conditions

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Opioid-use Disorder

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Prolonged Exposure Therapy

Within the general population, prolonged exposure therapy (PET) is a widely-used, empirically-supported and manualized therapy that is regarded as a first-line cognitive-behavioral treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PET is designed to disrupt the cycle of anxiety and avoidance that characterizes PTSD via sustained imaginal and in-vivo exposure exercises that deliberately and systematically expose patients to painful memories and current, real-life trauma reminders that were previously avoided, yet not inherently harmful. Overall, PET has well-documented efficacy for reducing PTSD symptom severity in both civilian and veteran populations. PET is effective for reducing PTSD symptoms regardless of whether it is delivered remotely or face-to-face. Recent data also suggest that PET can improve PTSD symptoms without exacerbating substance use or craving among patients with substance use disorders when PET and substance use disorder treatment are delivered concurrently.

BEHAVIORAL

Attendance-based monetary incentives

Participants will earn vouchers that have monetary value for attending scheduled PET appointments. Each consecutive attended session will increase the voucher amount so that each consecutively attended appointment is worth an incrementally higher dollar amount. To support completion of the full 12-week PET protocol, we will also incorporate additional strategically-placed bonuses into the reinforcement schedule with the goal of maximizing the percentage of subjects who complete the full 12-session protocol. First, to support consistent (vs. sporadic) attendance, participants will receive a bonus for every two consecutive sessions attended. Second, to support completion of the full PET protocol, participants will receive an additional bonus upon completion of Session 12.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Vermont

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Kelly Peck, Ph.D. · University of Vermont

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2021-04-06

Primary Completion

2023-07-31

Completion

2023-07-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations