A Neurosensory Account of Anxiety and Stress (Study 1)

Recruiting now · Not applicable · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Intrinsic and Novelty-related Sensory Cortical (SC) Disinhibition

In brief

This study will take a basic neuroscience approach to investigate pathological mechanisms underlying PTSD. Additionally, the study aims to identify how Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (tACS) brain stimulation can modulate and correct neural networks and related emotions of anxious arousal and hypervigilance, with the goal of assessing tACS brain stimulation technology as a novel intervention for symptoms of anxiety.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT05895006

Run by

The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

People needed

160

Starts

2022-04-05

Expected to finish

2026-12-31

Last updated by the study team

2025-09-12

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 50. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Right-handed
• With normal or corrected-to-normal vision and normal olfaction
• Between the ages of 18 and 50 years
• Meeting the tACS screening criteria (see List I below; e.g., lack of a serious head injury or loss of consciousness)
• Patients: Diagnosis of PTSD
• Patients: If taking psychotropic medications, medication stability in the past 2 months
• If having mild substance use disorder (for patients) or occasional substance use, abstention from use 48 hours before the experiment.

You may not qualify if…

• A history of diagnosis for a major medical illness (e.g., cancer, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, inflammatory disorders) or a neurological disorder (e.g., seizure, stroke, Parkinson's disease).
• Patients: Concurrent Axis I diagnosis (depression, anxiety, and mild substance use disorder are allowed given their high comorbidity with PTSD).
• Healthy controls: A history of diagnosis for a DSM-5 Axis I disorder or current use of psychoactive medications.
• Severe psychiatric instability or severe situational life crises, including evidence of being actively suicidal or homicidal, or any behavior that poses an immediate danger to self or others.
• History of head trauma with unconsciousness (> 5 minutes)
• Report that they regularly drink 3 or more alcoholic beverages a day.
• Report that they are unable to abstain from substance use (including alcohol, nicotine, cannabis, amphetamines, narcotics, solvents, cocaine, hallucinogens, tranquilizers, barbiturates, etc.) or sleep medication for 48 hours before being scanned.
• Are on calcium channel blockers (e.g., verapamil, nifedipine) or alpha-blockers (e.g., prazosin, terazosin) and are unable to stop these medications for a 48-hour period prior to scanning (to exclude the impact of these medications on the interpretation of fMRI/EEG).
• Failed Urine Drug Screening Test: A rapid urine screening test that utilizes monoclonal antibodies to detect elevated levels of specific drugs (including alcohol, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, cocaine, marijuana, opiates, etc.) in urine (iCup)
• Pregnancy based on urine test. The safety of MR systems has not been established for fetuses
• Having electrically, magnetically, or mechanically activated implants (e.g., cardiac pacemakers), because the electromagnetic fields produced by the MR system may interfere with the operation of these devices.

Where it is running

• The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston — Houston, Texas, United States (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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