Effects of Stress Hormones on Emotion and Cognition

Completed

Conditions studied: Healthy

In brief

The purpose of this study is to examine how hormonal changes that occur during stressful situations affect thought and emotions. Results from this study may lead to treatments that can alleviate the psychological effects of trauma. Levels of cortisol and norepinephrine increase in response to stress; these hormones also influence thought processes. This study will give hydrocortisone and/or yohimbine (a stimulator of central norepinephrine) to healthy adults in order to model the stress response and to better understand the way people process information during traumatic events. This study comprises two experiments in which the stress response is pharmacologically modeled. Participants in the study will have two study visits. During Visit 1, participants will undergo a psychiatric assessment, complete neuropsychological tasks, and have their IQ measured. During Visit 2, participants will be given hydrocortisone and/or yohimbine. Blood will be collected before and during this. Participants will then perform two experiments. In one experiment, participants will hear a story with emotional and non-emotional segments; in a second experiment, participants will view both emotional and non-emotional stimuli.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT00032838

Run by

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

People needed

170

Starts

2002-03-01

Expected to finish

2006-01-01

Last updated by the study team

2008-03-04

Who can join

Age: any. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Age: 18-36
• IQ: all subjects will have IQ greater than 85
• Follicular cycle: Women will participate in the encoding task between days 3-10.

You may not qualify if…

• Pregnancy/Nursing
• Only healthy individuals will participate; special attention will be taken to ensure that no subject has: hypertension, glaucoma, cataracts, ulcers, renal insufficiency, osteoporosis, hypothyroidism, cirrhosis, ocular herpes simplex and myocardial infarction.
• Use of hormonal contraception
• Use of glucocorticoids within past 3 years
• Use of any psychoactive substance; current or past psychiatric diagnosis.
• Irregular sleep pattern as defined as getting less than 6 hours of sleep per night, going to sleep after 2:00 AM; waking up before 5:00 AM or after 11:00 AM
• Weight that is 15% more or less than ideal body weight for sex and height
• History of panic attacks or first degree relative with history of panic attacks

Where it is running

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) — Bethesda, Maryland, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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