An Efficient Treatment for Posttraumatic Injury for Firefighters
Posttraumatic Stress DisorderInsomnia1 moreThe goal of this two-arm pilot randomized controlled trial is to test a behavioral intervention that integrates three evidence-based cognitive behavioral interventions (written exposure therapy; WET, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia; CBT-I, and cognitive behavioral therapy for nightmares; CBT-N) among firefighters. The main questions it aims to answer are: Is the behavioral intervention feasible, acceptable, and effective in reducing symptoms of posttraumatic stress, insomnia, and nightmares? What is the efficacy of efficient treatment vs. delayed treatment (2-4 week waitlist) in reducing symptoms of posttraumatic stress, insomnia, and nightmares? We will beta test the intervention in 1-2 groups of 3-5 firefighters. Then we will randomize 50 participants to immediate or delayed (2-4 week waitlist) treatment. Consented participants will: Complete self-report and interview measures assessing posttraumatic stress disorder, insomnia (PTSD), and nightmares Attend an individual treatment orientation session Attend a 4-day (~3 hours per day over 4 consecutive days) group treatment that integrates WET, CBT-I, and CBT-N Attend an individual booster session held approximately one week later Complete self-report measures before, during, and after treatment, and at a 3-month follow up assessment and a clinical interview before and after treatment to assess program efficacy.
Efficacy of Internet-delivered Cognitive-behavior Therapy for PTSD
Post Traumatic Stress DisorderThe goal of this clinical trial is to compare therapist-guided internet delivered prolonged exposure to an active control condition( therapist-guided internet delivered cognitive behavioral therapy containing relaxation techniques) for post-traumatic stress disorder. The objective with this study is to investigate efficacy, mechanisms of change and cost effectiveness of therapist-guided internet delivered prolonged exposure. Adult patients with post-traumatic stress disorder will be randomly assigned to receive either 10 weeks of therapist-guided internet delivered prolonged exposure or therapist-guided internet delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy containing relaxation.
Integration of Cognitive Processing Therapy and Relapse Prevention for Alcohol Use Disorder and...
Posttraumatic Stress DisorderAlcohol Use DisorderThe goal of this clinical trial is to test the efficacy of a novel integrative cognitive-behavioral intervention in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD). Specific Aim 1: Examine the efficacy of CPT-RP, as compared to RP alone, in reducing alcohol frequency (percent days drinking) and quantity (drinks per drinking day) as measured by the Timeline Follow-Back (TLFB). Specific Aim 2: Examine the efficacy of CPT-RP, as compared to RP alone, in reducing PTSD symptoms as measured by the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS-5). Specific Aim 3: Use ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to evaluate intervention effects on daily alcohol-related cognitions and behaviors through real-time associations with PTSD symptomatology and distress tolerance. Researchers will compare integrative CPT+RP with RP-alone to see if CPT+RP is more efficacious in reducing alcohol use and PTSD symptom severity.
Clinician-Assisted Videofeedback Exposure-Approach Therapy (CAVEAT) Trial
Post-traumatic Stress DisorderThe first study proposed is a small (n= 10 to 12 maximum) open feasibility trial of CAVEAT which is a 16-session manualized brief psychotherapy prototcol that is designed to help mothers of infants and young children, whereby the mothers have been exposed to interpersonal violence (i.e. childhood maltreatment and family violence, intimate and non-intimate partner violence, interpersonal combat and or other forms of terrorism or political violence including physical and sexual assault) and who have developed related post-traumatic stress. The treatment uses an integration and extension of evidence-based techniques: Modified Interaction Guidance, Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD, Child-Parent Psychotherapy, and Minding the Baby, in order to help mothers with post-traumatic dysregulation and difficulty in their maintaining sensitivity during challenging parent-child interactions (i.e. when mothers are confronted with child helpless states, emotion dysregulation, negative affect and child aggression). Outcome measures will initially include: maternal attributions towards her child (i.e. perception of child's personality), maternal-child behavior, and maternal-child symptoms of attachment disturbance and PTSD. This feasibility study is meant to perfect the manual and to prepare for an initial open trial with a larger clinical sample including analysis of pre- and post-intervention measures before further randomized control study can be done.
MDMA-Assisted Therapy for Stress Disorders in Healthcare Workers
Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderAdjustment DisordersThe purpose of this study is to assess the safety and efficacy of MDMA-Assisted Therapy on Health Care Workers suffering from symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress due to their work on the frontline of the COVID Pandemic.
The Canadian Depression Research and Intervention Network (CDRIN) Maritimes Registry
DepressionPost Traumatic Stress Disorder3 moreWhile effective interventions for depression exist, their success rates are unsatisfactory and their provision is haphazard. The Canadian Depression Research and Intervention Network (CDRIN) Maritimes Depression Hub will improve the delivery of care and the quality of outcomes for youths, adults and seniors with depression across the Maritimes. The investigators will establish an integrated system of assessment, treatment, research and education related to depression with the active involvement of those with lived experience. The establishment of a patient registry is a key step that will facilitate evaluation and reform of current services, integration of patient choice and community resources into treatment programs, monitoring long-term outcomes, and development of more effective treatment approaches through research. The registry will facilitate research that will include validation of new diagnostic and outcome measurement tools, low-cost clinical trials and collaborative projects with national and international partners. Educational programs will involve training the next generation of researchers, those with lived experience, clinicians, and health system managers in critical appraisal and will facilitate their involvement in research. The registry, the proposed systematic measurement of outcomes and the broad dissemination of information and skills will improve the quality of research and of care as well as the experience of patients and their families. The need for a registry: It is increasingly recognized that major advances in the treatment of mental disorders will require large scale clinical research. Recently demonstrated ways of completing large-scale research with finite resources include the routine use of electronic health records (EHR), data linkage and randomized registry trial. Use of EHR is the most efficient way of rapidly obtaining large amounts of information. However, EHR cannot completely exclude confounding by indication and other unmeasured variables. Therefore, tests of treatment effects require experimental designs that cannot be replaced by routine health records data. The gold standard for testing the effects of treatment in an unbiased way is the randomized controlled trial (RCT), where measured and unmeasured confounders are balanced through the randomization process and any remaining confounding is due to chance alone. RCTs are valued as the highest level of evidence, but are costly and take significant time to be completed, partly because of the need to screen a large group of individuals to identify eligible participants. The most efficient unbiased test of interventions, new treatment modalities and novel ways of treatment delivery is a method that combines EHR use with the randomized controlled trial (RCT) methodology: the randomized registry trial (RRT). The RRT takes advantage of a registry of individuals with available information to identify a large number of individuals suitable for an RCT. The RRT approach is efficient especially if the same information (e.g. diagnosis and treatment history) is used repeatedly for different purposes. The same information can be used for clinical purposes, service improvement and multiple research projects. RRT will allow obtaining answers about the efficacy of new treatments and management strategies significantly faster and at a much lower cost than traditional RCTs. Therefore, the investigators propose to establish a registry that has the capacity to conduct RRTs. The proposed registry will be integrated with similar efforts across Canada. Jointly, this collaborative network of registries will facilitate fast and economical testing of new treatments, which is urgently needed to advance the therapeutic options for people with depression and related conditions.
Retinal Imaging in Neurodegenerative Disease
Alzheimer's DiseaseMild Cognitive Impairment13 moreThis study aims to develop and evaluate biomarkers using non-invasive optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) as well as ultra-widefield (UWF) fundus photography to assess the structure and function of the retinal and choroidal microvasculature and structure in persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's Disease (AD), Parkinson's Disease (PD), or other neurodegenerative disease, diseases as outlined.
The Effects of MDMA on Prefrontal and Amygdala Activation in PTSD.
Post Traumatic Stress DisorderThis study aims to investigate the effects of MDMA on prefrontal and amygdala activation, and to explore the relationship between these MDMA-induced neural changes and the acute behavioral effects of the drug in patients with PTSD.
Neuroeconomics of Social Behavior Following Trauma Exposure
Posttraumatic Stress DisorderThis study will use a neuroeconomic paradigm with state-of-the-art imaging protocols to probe abnormal social reward processing underlying social withdrawal in symptomatic trauma-exposed women. By also gathering self-report measures of social anhedonia, performance on non-social and social reward valuation tasks, and measures of real-world social functioning including social network size, we aim to specify how alterations in social reward processing result in social withdrawal and functional impairment.
fMRI to Examine the Effect of CBTm to Increase Resiliency for PTSD
Stress DisordersPost-TraumaticA substantial proportion of public safety personnel (PSP) develop service-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is associated with a range of negative outcomes and its exact underlying neurophysiological mechanism is still not well understood. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is commonly prescribed to treat PTSD, and recent studies suggest that it may be effective in preventing the condition. We have developed a 5-session class focused on teaching introductory CBT skills to prevent and manage psychological distress, and we are currently in the process of launching a clinical trial to demonstrate its effectiveness in preventing PTSD and related conditions in PSP. In the proposed adjunctive study to this trial, we will quantitate the brain connectivity signature that is specific to the PTSD-resilience, and examine whether the classes increase this resilience-related brain mechanism.