Status:

COMPLETED

Memory and the Hippocampus in Twins

Lead Sponsor:

US Department of Veterans Affairs

Conditions:

PTSD

Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

Eligibility:

MALE

50-70 years

Brief Summary

The purpose of this project is to measure brain markers and cognitive factors in twins with a history of military service with and without PTSD, and to follow them over time and measure changes in bra...

Detailed Description

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a condition of critical importance to the Veterans Health Administration that affects up to 15% of Vietnam combat veterans.1 Studies in animals demonstrated tha...

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion

  • All twins will be required to give written informed consent.
  • Subjects will be included with a history of Vietnam Era service.
  • All subjects must be free of major medical illness on the basis of history and physical examination, lab testing, and electrocardiogram.

Exclusion

  • Subjects will be excluded with a history of shrapnel or other foreign bodies that would preclude MRI scanning, history of loss of consciousness, or neuroleptics, sedative or benzodiazepine medication usage within the previous four weeks.
  • Subjects will also be excluded if based on the SCID interview they have comorbid:
  • schizophrenia;
  • schizoaffective disorder;
  • bulimia or anorexia, or
  • bipolar disorder.
  • Subjects will also be excluded with a history of blast injury with associated traumatic brain injury.
  • In addition, subjects will be excluded with a history of alcohol or substance abuse/dependence within the past year. We will use the strategy used in prior MRI studies and use multivariate analyses to examine the contribution of past histories of alcohol and substance abuse (as measured with the Addiction Severity Index) and depression symptom level (as measured with the Hamilton Depression Scale) to the outcomes of interest.
  • Subjects will be excluded from the study if they present with a history of serious medical or neurological illness, or as a result of routine laboratory studies, history of asthma, steroid usage, seizure disorder, or prenatal/perinatal substance exposure or trauma.

Key Trial Info

Start Date :

April 1 2010

Trial Type :

OBSERVATIONAL

Allocation :

ACTUAL

End Date :

June 1 2013

Estimated Enrollment :

142 Patients enrolled

Trial Details

Trial ID

NCT00638885

Start Date

April 1 2010

End Date

June 1 2013

Last Update

January 15 2015

Active Locations (1)

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Page 1 of 1 (1 locations)

1

Atlanta VA Medical and Rehab Center, Decatur

Decatur, Georgia, United States, 30033