The Effects of Very Brief Exposure on PTSD in U.S. Combat Veterans

NCT06218381 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: CHLA-20-00782
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 80
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to develop a new behavioral treatment for U.S. combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), very brief exposure to combat-related stimuli. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. 1.How does Very Brief Exposure (combat images and control everyday images) and Visible Exposure to combat stimuli affect brain activity and subjective fear ratings?
2. 2.To what extent are participants aware of the stimuli presented and tolerating the exposures?

Conditions

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Keywords

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; Veteran; Very Brief Exposure

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Mean Activation of Frontostriatal and Prefrontal Brain Regions to combat stimuli in PTSD

  A hypothesis-driven, group-level analysis will test brain activity, measured as Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) response, in 4 regions of interest while minimizing Type II error.

  Day 2

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Fear induced by exposure to combat stimuli in PTSD in veteran group as measured by fear scale

  Day 2

• Fear induced by exposure to combat stimuli in PTSD in healthy participants as measured by fear scale

  Day 2

• Fear induced by exposure to combat stimuli in PTSD in veteran group as measured by fear scale

  Days 3-7

Study Arms (1)

Image Exposure Arm

EXPERIMENTAL

This within-subjects design study will have all participants view three types of exposure during fMRI scanning: VBE to combat images, VBE to masked everyday scenes (control), and conscious visible exposure to the same images (control).

Other: Very Brief Exposure to Combat Images

Interventions

Very Brief Exposure to Combat Images OTHER

In VBE, a series of pictures representing a person's fears (e.g., a combat scene with arousing visuals) is presented very briefly (17 ms), followed by a masking stimulus that prevents conscious recognition of each picture. This sequence of picture-mask stimuli is repeated many times in an exposure session.

Image Exposure Arm

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Patient Population
• Males and females ages 18-50
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM-5) diagnosis of PTSD
• Traumatic event is a combat-based experience (e.g., being injured, watching a buddy be killed)
• Minimum score of 18 on the Combat Experience Scale (CES)
• Minimum score of 3 or more on Primary Care (PC)-PTSD-5
• Participants with other cooccurring psychiatric disorders (e.g., anxiety, ADHD) will be included to ensure a representative sample.
• Healthy Population
• Males and Females, ages 18-50

You may not qualify if:

• Patient Population
• Treatment for PTSD, substance abuse, or mental health concerns in the past 6 months
• or more years since the combat trauma
• Acute intoxication
• Severe level of Substance Dependence (6 or more DSM-V symptoms)
• Prior diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorders
• Current or past psychotic disorders or active psychotic symptoms
• Current Bipolar I Disorder
• Dementia
• Neurological or serious medical conditions (e.g., stroke, epilepsy/ seizure disorder, cancer, Lupus, HIV+);
• Traumatic brain injury
• Healthy Population
• Ferromagnetic implants (e.g., pacemaker), metal braces, retainers, tattoos or permanent make up w/ metallic content, transdermal medicinal patches that cannot be removed
• Neurological or serious medical conditions (e.g., stroke, epilepsy/ seizure disorder, cancer, Lupus, HIV+);
• Lifetime Diagnosis of PTSD, Tourette's Syndrome, Bipolar Disorder, Substance Dependence, Eating Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, a psychotic disorder, Acute Stress Disorder

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Children's Hospital Los Angeles: lead

Study Sites (1)

Brain Imaging Lab

Los Angeles, California, 90027, United States

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Stress Disorders, Traumatic; Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Bradley M Peterson, MD

  Children's Hospital Los Angeles

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Courtney Marcelino

CONTACT

323-361-6456; cmarcelino@chla.usc.edu

Bradley S Peterson, MD

CONTACT

323-361-3654; bpeterson@chla.usc.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Chief, Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 9, 2024
• First Posted: January 23, 2024
• Study Start: March 22, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): July 1, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): July 1, 2027
• Last Updated: December 18, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)