Tetris Intervention Following Subliminal Reactivation for Intrusive Memories

NCT07495917 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: XAJWKY-2025062
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 123
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is characterized by recurrent, intrusive memories of traumatic events that cause significant distress and functional impairment. Although trauma-focused treatments are effective, they typically require deliberate recollection of traumatic experiences, which can be distressing and may contribute to treatment avoidance or dropout. In previous experimental studies conducted with healthy participants, we demonstrated that unconscious reactivation of trauma-related cues, followed-after a brief delay corresponding to the memory reconsolidation window-by a visuospatial interference task (Tetris gameplay), reduced the frequency and emotional intensity of intrusive memories. These findings suggest that memory representations may be modifiable during reconsolidation without requiring conscious recall. Building on this work, the present randomized controlled trial (RCT) aims to evaluate the clinical efficacy and tolerability of this reconsolidation-based intervention in trauma-exposed individuals experiencing five or more intrusive memories per week.

Conditions

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); Intrusive Memories of Traumatic Event(s)

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Number of trauma-related intrusive memories

  Number of trauma-related intrusive memories assessed via a daily diary.

  Day 66 - 72(all arms) controlling for run-in/baseline week

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Number of trauma-related intrusive memories

  Day 18 - 24 , Day 42 - 48(all arms) controlling for run-in/baseline week

• Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 (CAPS-5)

  Baseline (day 0) and day 73 (all arms)

• Intrusive memory ratings

  Day 24, day 48, day 72, 2 months after the last intervention(all arms)

• PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5)

  Baseline(day 0), day25, day49, day73, 2 months after the last intervention(all arms)

• Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R)

  Baseline(day 0), day25, day49, day73, 2 months after the last intervention(all arms)

Other Outcomes (4)

• Changes to health

  Day73 and 2 months after the last intervention(all arms)

• Feedback questionnaire

  Day65 (all arms)

• Post-Intervention Questionnaire

  Day1, 9, 17, 25, 33, 41, 49, 57, 65 (all arms)

Study Arms (3)

Unconscious Reactivation

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in this experimental arm will undergo subliminal (unconscious) reactivation of trauma-related memories. Trauma cues are presented strictly below the threshold of conscious awareness to minimize psychological distress, while theoretically aiming to trigger the destabilization of the target memory.

Behavioral: Subliminal Cue + Visuospatial Task

Conscious Reactivation

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in this experimental arm will undergo active, supraliminal (conscious) reactivation of trauma-related memories. This arm serves as the standard clinical benchmark to test the established reconsolidation-interference framework, where the target memory is explicitly recalled prior to intervention.

Behavioral: Supraliminal Cue + Visuospatial Task

No Reactivation Control

SHAM COMPARATOR

Participants in this control arm will not undergo trauma memory reactivation. This condition is designed as a sham comparator to match the overall timing and structure of the experimental arms, isolating the specific effect of memory reactivation and controlling for the nonspecific effects of task engagement.

Behavioral: Visuospatial Task Only

Interventions

Subliminal Cue + Visuospatial Task BEHAVIORAL

Before completing the baseline diary, participants are required to provide 4 trauma-related images. In each intervention session, participants are exposed to trauma-related cues subliminally, followed by a computer-based visuospatial task (Tetris gameplay). This task is designed to introduce targeted cognitive interference within the hypothesized reconsolidation window.

Unconscious Reactivation

Supraliminal Cue + Visuospatial Task BEHAVIORAL

Before completing the baseline diary, participants are required to provide 4 trauma-related images.Participants undergo conscious reactivation of trauma-related cues, followed by a computer-based visuospatial task (Tetris gameplay). This task is designed to introduce targeted cognitive interference within a window during which memory representations may be susceptible to modification.

Conscious Reactivation

Visuospatial Task Only BEHAVIORAL

Before completing the baseline diary, participants are required to provide 4 trauma-related images.Participants do not receive any memory reactivation cues (neither explicit nor subliminal). They directly engage in the computer-based visuospatial task (Tetris gameplay) without undergoing prior trauma memory destabilization.

No Reactivation Control

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 50 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Meet DSM-5 PTSD Criterion A (eg, exposure to actual or threatened death). Have experienced one or more traumatic events.
• Experienced five or more intrusive memories during the baseline week.
• Have internet access and have access to a personal computer.
• Be willing to provide consent and able to complete study procedures and be contacted by the study team.

You may not qualify if:

• Have fewer than five intrusive memories during the baseline week.
• A current diagnosis of schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a severe personality disorder judged to interfere with treatment adherence, or acute suicidal behavior.
• Have severe substance dependence.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Shaanxi Normal University: lead

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

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

Central Study Contacts

Zhu Zijian

CONTACT

+86 13572494696; zhuzijian0203@snnu.edu.cn

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, INVESTIGATOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Associate Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 21, 2026
• First Posted: March 27, 2026
• Study Start: March 27, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): March 27, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 30, 2027
• Last Updated: March 27, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP, ICF, CSR, ANALYTIC CODE