Spatial Context and Fear Learning

NCT02423044 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: 15011415-M-0114
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 82
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Background: \- Fear is a normal response to a threat. Learning fear can be helpful sometimes. For people with anxiety disorders, fear can be long-lasting and too intense. Researchers want to study how people become fearful of situations. They want to understand how the brain learns when it is helpful to feel fear and when it is not. Objective: \- To better understand brain processes related to fear and anxiety. Eligibility:

• Right-handed adults ages 18 50 with generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Right handed volunteers ages 18-50 without psychiatric disorders.
• And free of psychiatric medication for 2 weeks Design:
• Participants will first be screened under another protocol.
• Participants will play a video game inside a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. The scanner is a metal cylinder It is surrounded by a strong magnetic field. Participants will lie on a table that can slide in and out of the scanner. A device called a coil will be placed over the head.
• During the scan, participants may play a virtual reality video game. Game instructions will be explained before they enter the scanner.
• While playing the game, participants will wear 2 electrodes on their fingers. These measure sweat on the skin. They will also have 2 small electrodes attached to the left hand. These can give brief mild electrical shocks.
• Participants will be asked questions when playing the game during the scan.
• Before and after the scan, participants will fill out questionnaires about their emotions. They may complete questionnaires online while at the clinic.

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders

Keywords

Anxiety; fMRI; Virtual Reality; Shock Threat; Healthy Volunteer

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• The primary objective is to investigate the neural bases of contextual fear learning measures by the event-related hemodynamic response (fMRI).

  12/29/16

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• The secondary objective is to see learning of the contextual fear response that will be measured by psychophysiological responses such as SCR, heart rate, pupil dilatation, and breathing.

  12/29/16

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 50 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Ages 18-50
• Subjects able to give their consent
• Right handed
• Patients only: a primary diagnosis of GAD, panic disorder, SAD, or PTSD according to the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR

You may not qualify if:

• Non-English speaking individual
• Any significant medical or neurological problems (e.g. cardiovascular illness, respiratory illness, neurological illness, seizure, etc.)
• High or low blood pressure (SBP\>140 or SBP\<90; SDP\<50 or SDP\>90)
• Alcohol/drug abuse in the past year or lifetime alcohol or drug dependence according to the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR
• Pregnancy or positive pregnancy test
• Neurological syndrome of the wrist (e.g., carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome, etc.)
• Positive urine toxicology screen
• IQ \<80
• Participants who report getting severe motion sickness, especially by playing video games
• Any medical condition that increases risk for fMRI:
• Any metal implants (clips, screws, plates, pins, etc) or metal fragments cause by injuries or metal working
• Any sort of medical implants (aneurysm clips, pacemaker, insulin pump, Hickman line, etc.)
• Permanent eye liner and tattoos above the neck
• Patients who have difficulty lying flat on their back for up to 60 min in the scanner
• Participants who are uncomfortable in small closed spaces (have claustrophobia) and would feel uncomfortable in the MRI machine

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): lead

Study Sites (1)

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, 9000 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, United States

Location

Related Publications (2)

• Britton JC, Lissek S, Grillon C, Norcross MA, Pine DS. Development of anxiety: the role of threat appraisal and fear learning. Depress Anxiety. 2011 Jan;28(1):5-17. doi: 10.1002/da.20733. Epub 2010 Aug 23.

  PMID: 20734364 BACKGROUND

• Huff NC, Zeilinski DJ, Fecteau ME, Brady R, LaBar KS. Human fear conditioning conducted in full immersion 3-dimensional virtual reality. J Vis Exp. 2010 Aug 9;(42):1993. doi: 10.3791/1993.

  PMID: 20736913 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Monique Ernst, M.D.

  National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: CASE CONTROL
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: NIH
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 18, 2015
• First Posted: April 22, 2015
• Study Start: April 18, 2015
• Primary Completion: October 30, 2018
• Study Completion: October 30, 2018
• Last Updated: November 4, 2019

Record last verified: 2018-10-30

Locations

US (1)