Approach-Avoidance and Alcohol Challenge Study in PTSD

Part of paid clinical trials in Austin, Texas.

Sponsor
University of Texas at Austin
Study ID
NCT06002633
Status
Recruiting
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Conditions

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
21 Years - 60 Years
Healthy Volunteers
Accepted

Interventions

  • Alcohol — OTHER
    Participants will consume beverages containing alcohol.
  • Placebo — OTHER
    Participants will consume beverages containing a very low dose of alcohol (placebo condition).

Study Details

Individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have greater prevalence of alcohol use disorders (AUDs), with this comorbidity associated with worse illness outcomes, yet there remains limited mechanistic understanding of how PTSD confers risk for AUD. Understanding risk factors that associate with and predict the development of AUDs in PTSD could inform interventions and prevention efforts to reduce the rate of this comorbidity and improve outcomes of both disorders. Identifying predictors of risk requires longitudinal studies in PTSD aimed at capturing the mechanisms leading to the emergence of AUDs. There is growing evidence PTSD is related to biased decision-making during approach-avoidance conflict. Alcohol is also suggested to alter approach-avoidance decision-making. AUDs and acute alcohol intoxication is associated with a bias to seek out reward despite the possibility of threat (e.g., contributing to relapse following alcohol cue exposure and risky behavior during intoxication respectively). Alcohol-induced changes in approach-avoidance decision-making have not been investigated in the context of PTSD, but emerging data support the investigators' hypothesis that an interaction between alcohol and approach-avoidance conflict in PTSD may occur and contribute to risk for alcohol misuse and development of alcohol problems. No current data, cross-sectional or longitudinal, have tested the role of alcohol-induced changes in approach-avoidance conflict as a mechanism of risk for AUD among individuals with PTSD. To address this gap, the investigators propose to leverage the group's expertise in placebo-controlled alcohol administration procedures, longitudinal modeling, functional neuroimaging, and computational neuroscience approaches to investigate the effects of acute alcohol on approach-avoidance decision-making and mediating changes in multivariate neurocircuitry patterns in limbic, striatal, and salience networks.

Key Dates

Start date
Oct 23, 2023
Status verified
Apr 2026
Primary completion
May 31, 2028
Completion
May 31, 2028

Study Design

Enrollment
200 participants (estimated)
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
PREVENTION

Arms

  • Active Comparator: Alcohol
    Participants will drink beverages containing alcohol.
  • Placebo Comparator: Placebo
    Participants will drink beverages containing a very low dose of alcohol (placebo condition).

Primary Outcome Measure

ratio of approach to avoidance choices [ Time Frame: 1 week ]

Central Contacts

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
University of Texas at AustinAustinTexas78712
Research Coordinator
[email protected]
512-495-5198

Find similar trials in Austin, TX

By condition
PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
By specialty
PsychiatryMental healthBehavioral health
By research site
University of Texas at Austin· Austin, TX

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