Adaptation of Written Exposure Therapy in Substance Treatment

Part of paid clinical trials in Baltimore, Maryland.

Sponsor
Potomac Health Foundations
Study ID
NCT07108608
Status
Not Yet Recruiting

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Conditions

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - N/A
Healthy Volunteers
Not accepted

Interventions

  • Written Exposure Therapy — BEHAVIORAL
    Written Exposure Therapy is a brief, evidenced based intervention for PTSD. WET is generally delivered individually across 5 sessions in which the therapist guides the patient through writing exercises. Across exposure sessions, participants experience habituation so that their symptoms decrease by the end of treatment. WET has an established evidence base in general outpatient psychotherapy for PTSD, but has not been adapted or tested in residential SUD treatment settings. Further, the investigators have adapted WET for this setting based on stakeholder and expert feedback.
  • Treatment as Usual — BEHAVIORAL
    Treatment as Usual will include a variety of standard care services offered in short term residential treatment. For example, participants receiving TAU will participate in individual case management/general counseling sessions focused on substance use disorder and its consequences, group based psychoeducation sessions, group based counseling sessions (e.g., relapse prevention planning), individual services with a medical provider and pharmacotherapy (e.g., for withdrawal, relapse prevention, or co-occurring conditions)

Study Details

The purpose of this pilot non-randomized, uncontrolled clinical trial is to test the feasibility and efficacy of written exposure therapy (WET) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as adapted for use within the context of residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. All participants meet criteria for PTSD and are in a short term residential SUD treatment program (target residential treatment duration = 28 days) regardless of the research. The main question the study aims to answer is: 1) Is the delivery of adapted WET feasible and acceptable in short term residential SUD treatment for individuals with severe SUD?

Key Dates

Start date
Aug 25, 2025
Status verified
Aug 2025
Primary completion
Apr 30, 2026
Completion
Sep 30, 2026

Study Design

Enrollment
20 participants (estimated)
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
TREATMENT

Arms

  • Experimental: TAU + Adapted Written Exposure Therapy (WET)
    Participants in this condition receive everything included in TAU plus 5 individual sessions of WET delivered by a therapist. WET has been adapted for delivery in a residential SUD setting according to expert feedback. Sessions average less than 60 minutes and primarily involve writing about the traumatic experience that is guided by the therapist.

Primary Outcome Measure

PTSD symptom reduction [ Time Frame: Pre-WEST intervention; post-WEST intervention (approximately 14 days after randomization, but will vary based on when participants complete the intervention); 4-weeks post enrollment; 8-weeks post enrollment; 12-weeks post enrollment. ]

Central Contacts

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
Maryland Treatment CentersBaltimoreMaryland21229
Kevin Wenzel, PhD
[email protected]
410.233.1400
Marc Fishman, MD
[email protected]
410.233.1400

Find similar trials in Baltimore, MD

By condition
PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
By specialty
PsychiatryMental healthBehavioral health
By research site
Maryland Treatment Centers· Baltimore, MD

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