Integrated PTSD and Chronic Pain Treatment

NCT07225049 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 20

Last updated 2025-12-17

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) occurs in approximately 7% of adults in the general population. PTSD greatly impacts quality of life and often co-occurs with other conditions such as chronic pain. Individuals with co-morbid PTSD and chronic pain demonstrate higher PTSD symptoms and pain (as well as greater anxiety, depression, disability, and opioid use) compared to those with only one of those conditions. Gold standard treatments exist for both PTSD (e.g., Prolonged Exposure; PE) and chronic pain (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain; CBT-CP) and are generally offered sequentially (i.e., one at a time for the condition that is most prominent). Treating these conditions separately may overlook their interconnected nature, which may reduce efficacy and increase dropout. Thus, there is a need for an intervention to target both simultaneously, which may be more effective and efficient than treating conditions sequentially.

This is a single-arm pilot study to assess the feasibility and acceptability of an integrated treatment for adults with comorbid PTSD and chronic pain. The intervention consists of 12 90-minute virtual psychotherapy sessions scheduled twice per week. The treatment draws from modules in PE and CBT-CP including psychoeducation, exposure to feared/avoided situations and activities, processing of exposures, behavioral activation, breathing and relaxation techniques, sleep hygiene, symptom monitoring, and structured homework assignments. Baseline and post-treatment assessments will be conducted.

Conditions

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Integrated Treatment for PTSD and Chronic Pain

The intervention consists of 12 90-minute virtual psychotherapy sessions scheduled twice per week. The treatment integrates modules from Prolonged Exposure and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Weill Medical College of Cornell University

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • JoAnn Difede, PhD · Weill Medical College of Cornell University

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-12-08
Primary Completion
2027-08-31
Completion
2027-08-31

Countries

  • United States

Study Locations

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Entities

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 NCT07225049 on ClinicalTrials.gov