Active clinical trials for "Cocaine-Related Disorders"

Repetitive bilateral (left cathodal/ right anodal) transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) reduces craving and seems to decrease relapse risk in addiction. However, little is known about the relapse rates in cocaine addiction after tDCS, despite the need for neurobiological treatments to reduce the high relapse rates in this population. The current study explores the effects of repetitive tDCS in a larger sample (N=60) of cocaine addicted patients on number of relapse days after three months. We expect that a decrease in relapse risk after tDCS is associated with cognitive control functioning. Therefore, risky decision making and inhibitory control will be measured before and after the interventions, and at three months follow-up. Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) will be used as a reliable measure for relapse, craving and mood.

The purpose of this research study is to determine whether a medication called pioglitazone (trade name Actos) can reduce behavioral problems associated with cocaine use, improve brain structural changes associated with cocaine use and reduce cocaine craving and drug use in cocaine dependent patients.

The main purpose of this study is to determine if it is safe to use the study drug, clavulanic acid, in combination with cocaine. In this study, subjects will receive intravenous (i.v.) cocaine and the study drug, clavulanic acid. The safety of clavulanic acid is being studied so future studies can be done to find out if this drug is helpful in treating cocaine dependence. Currently, there is no available medication treatment for cocaine dependence.

While physical activity has been associated with decreased craving and increased abstinence rates in smokers, few published studies have examined the effects of exercise on recovery from other drugs such as cocaine. One factor that has impeded such research has been low levels of patient compliance with exercise protocols. One robust strategy for promoting and maintaining behavior change is contingency management or Behavioral Incentives (BI). BI delivers incentives (prizes, vouchers) contingent upon target behaviors such as cocaine abstinence (Higgins et al., 1994); treatment attendance (Svikis et al., 1997) and other pro-social behaviors (Kirby et al., 1998). While the literature is replete with studies demonstrating the benefit of BI compared to control conditions (Stitzer & Petry, 2006), the translation of BI methods from research to clinical practice has met with some resistance. Contributing factors include philosophical differences (e.g., counselors feel extrinsic reinforcement undermines recovery) and practical barriers (e.g., monetary costs of incentives may be prohibitive). The latter concern was addressed by Petry (2005) who developed the "fish bowl" method, which uses escalating variable ratio procedures to reduce per patient costs of BI with similar effect sizes. As a Stage 1 behavioral therapies development grant (Rounsaville et al., 2001), the primary aim of this research is to pilot test a BI intervention designed to promote regular physical activity in a sample of women receiving inpatient treatment for SUDs. The target behavior, physical activity, will be objectively defined as 30 minutes of observed treadmill walking at any intensity 3 days/week at Level 1, and 30 minutes of higher intensity physical activity that meets ACSM criteria for moderate exercise Level 2. Specifically, a pilot randomized clinical trial will compare rates of physical activity over a 6 week study period in a sample of N=50 women with Cocaine Dependence. All participants will complete baseline assessment, attend a 45-min Health and Fitness (HF) education group, followed by random assignment to either the experimental (BI) or control (C) groups, with equal daily access to on-site treadmills. Those randomized to BI, however, will also be eligible 3 days/week, to receive incentives for completing 30 minutes of treadmill walking. Incentives will be dispensed using Petry Fish Bowl methods. Women assigned to the BI group will receive behavioral incentives (in the form of gift cards or prizes) for completing their scheduled exercise sessions (Level 1), and have the opportunity to earn "bonus" draws for meeting moderate intensity exercise criteria, as specified by ACSM (2007, revised) guidelines (Level 2). In Level 1, the number of tokens participants can draw from the gym bag (present study equivalent to "fishbowl") at each visit will be linked to exercise session attendance, with consistent attendance resulting in greater number of draws. In Level 2, the number of tokens a participant can draw from the gym bag will be linked to the intensity of the participant's exercise. Specifically, beginning in Week 2 of the study, participants will be re-evaluated for exercise capability. Those who pass the safety screen will be encouraged to exercise at a higher intensity, and those who do not will be re-evaluated until they obtain safety clearance. Once cleared, if the participant meets criteria for moderate exercise during her scheduled session, then she will be allotted a "bonus" draw (Level 2) for meeting Level 2 criteria, in addition to the escalating number of draws she would received for scheduled exercise session completion (Level 1). Scheduled treadmill walking will be monitored and recorded for both BI and C group women. Follow-ups will occur at study midpoint and completion (3 and 6 weeks post-randomization, respectively), and at 4 weeks post-discharge. Assessments will focus on drug craving, mood, stress, motivation/self-efficacy, and physical health and well being. The investigators hypothesize that women in the BI group will complete more treadmill sessions and spend more time treadmill walking than those in the C group. As a Stage 1b therapy development RCT, study data will be used for effect size estimation in preparation for Stage 2 RCT. This dissertation proposal will provide benchmark data on the utility of BI for promoting physical activity. Further, it will promote exercise compliance, allowing scientists to better evaluate potential benefits of physical activity on treatment outcomes in women with SUDs.

The investigators' recently completed study has provided the first evidence that administration of the medication propranolol, following exposure to cocaine cues, can alter drug-associated memories and reduce craving and other drug cue-elicited responses in cocaine addicted persons. The investigators will attempt to augment this effect by a) doubling the number of propranolol-medicated cocaine cue exposure (CCE) retrieval sessions and b) increasing the dose of propranolol. It is expected that propranolol treated groups, relative to placebo treated groups, will evidence greater reduction of craving, cue reactivity and cocaine use during follow-up cocaine cue exposures. Also, these effects will be greater for those who receive 80mg of propranolol as opposed to 40mg.

This study will investigate a treatment strategy in which a computer-assisted behavioral intervention will be used to help individuals stop their use of cocaine. A medication will be combined with the behavioral treatment among those individuals who do not respond to the behavioral intervention alone. The primary hypothesis of the study is that among cocaine dependent individuals who fail to respond to an initial trial of behavioral therapy, a greater proportion of individuals will benefit from the combined treatment (behavior therapy plus medication) compared to individuals in the comparison group.

This is a Phase II within-subjects double-blind placebo-controlled human laboratory study. The purpose of the study is to determine the efficacy of varenicline (Chantix) for reducing cue-induced cocaine and alcohol craving.

Cocaine addiction continues to be a major problem in the U.S. with no FDA-approved pharmaceutical therapy. Finding effective treatment for cocaine addiction has long been a challenge to scientists and clinicians. Psychosocial interventions known as behavior therapies are the cornerstone of cocaine addiction treatment. However, there is an urgent need to further improve treatment outcomes, especially during early recovery and the protracted withdrawal phase of the treatment since many patients drop out or relapse during this phase. Our clinical experience and studies suggest that integrative Meditation (IM) helps reduce cravings and withdrawal symptoms and increases treatment retention. The benefit of IM is well supported by tension-reduction theory and attention-networks framework in addiction treatment. The proposed study will implement a therapy development study to add IM as a self-care component to the current outpatient treatment of cocaine addiction to improve treatment outcomes. The specific aims of the proposed study include: 1) to conduct a 12-week controlled trial with outpatient cocaine users to assess feasibility of recruiting and retaining cocaine addicts and to determine effect size of IM-augmented treatment in comparison with Nondirective Therapy (NT) control, with both groups receiving standard outpatient treatment as usual (TAU), thereby facilitating future larger scale therapy development study; and 2) to examine the changes in attention networks and negative mood as possible mediators of treatment outcomes between the two groups.

This is the first study to be conducted in humans for JDTic, a new chemical entity, with evaluations focusing on the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of JDTic following administration of single oral doses. JDTic is a novel, selective κ opioid receptor antagonist and is currently being developed by RTI International as a potential pharmacotherapy to treat cocaine dependence. This study has the possibility of identifying the maximum tolerated dose in humans and a surrogate measure of JDTic pharmacodynamic (PD) activity. Data from this study will be used to plan for and define dose ranges for subsequent studies, as well as to identify potential indicators of JDTic pharmacological activity.

The purpose of this study is to determine if the opioid agonist effects of doses of 4/1 mg, 8/2 mg, and 16/4 mg of buprenorphine/naloxone can be completely blocked by 50 mg of oral naltrexone. This study will provide data to support the design of a similar study of the depot formulation of naltrexone and ultimately to study this combination for the treatment of cocaine dependence.