Evaluating Treatments for Suicidal Veterans With PTSD
Recruiting now · Not applicable
Conditions studied: Self-directed Violence, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
In brief
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a significant driver of suicide risk among Veterans, but there is a critical knowledge gap about how to treat PTSD among people at elevated risk for suicide. Although evidence-based treatments for PTSD reduce suicide risk, Veterans at high risk for suicidal behavior rarely receive these potentially life-saving treatments. Prior research suggests that a treatment that combines Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) with the DBT Prolonged Exposure protocol (DBT PE) for PTSD improves both PTSD and suicide-related outcomes. This study will evaluate whether DBT + DBT PE improves these outcomes more than Prolonged Exposure plus suicide risk management, the gold standard VA care for this population. The proposed study will also examine factors that make it easier and harder to implement these treatments in VA settings. The results will help to inform treatment guidelines for this high-priority Veteran population.
Key facts
- Study ID
- NCT05974631
- Run by
- VA Office of Research and Development
- People needed
- 125
- Starts
- 2024-07-08
- Expected to finish
- 2028-08-31
- Last updated by the study team
- 2026-07-16
Who can join
Age: 18 and older. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.
You may qualify if…
- PTSD
- Recent and repeated self-directed violence
- Current suicidal ideation
- Emotion dysregulation
- Veteran eligible for VHA mental health care at participating site
- Willing to participate in all study activities
You may not qualify if…
- Unable to maintain safety independently
- Currently engaged in and/or recent (past year) history of receiving a sufficient dose of DBT or PE
- Plan to move away or be unavailable for >4 weeks in the next 18 months
- Unable to sufficiently comprehend study procedures due to lack of English proficiency or moderate to severe cognitive impairment
Where it is running
- Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN — Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States (enrolling)
- Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, NC — Durham, North Carolina, United States (enrolling)
- South Texas Health Care System, San Antonio, TX — San Antonio, Texas, United States (enrolling)
- VA Puget Sound Health Care System Seattle Division, Seattle, WA — Seattle, Washington, United States (enrolling)
Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov
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