Can Oxytocin Enhance the Placebo Effect?

University of Electronic Science and Technology of China

Status and phase: Completed; Phase 1

Conditions: Oxytocin Effect on Memory Performance During Phase 4; Oxytocin Effect on Memory Performance During Phase 3; Oxytocin Effect on Memory Performance During Phase 2; Oxytocin Effect on Memory Performance During Phase 1

Treatments: Drug: Oxytocin; Drug: Placebo

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02745522

UESTC-neuSCAN-07

Details and patient eligibility

About

The current study aimed to investigate whether oxytocin (OXT) had effect on placebo effect.

Full description

The current study included three phases to investigate oxytocin effect on placebo effect:

1. In a double-blind, between-subject, placebo controlled design study to investigate the intranasal OXT (24IU) treatment in 66 healthy male subjects using working memory task.
2. In a single-blind(subjects were informed that the treatment was oxytocin), between-subject, placebo controlled design study to investigate the intranasal OXT (24IU) treatment in 53 healthy male subjects using working memory task.They were informed that oxytocin would increase memory perfomance by a female experimenter.
3. In a single-blind(subjects were informed that the treatment was oxytocin), between-subject, placebo controlled design study to investigate the intranasal OXT (24IU) treatment in 53 healthy male subjects using working memory task. But the subjects were told that oxytocin would decrease the performance by the same female experimenter.
4. In a single-blind(subjects were informed that the treatment was oxytocin), between-subject, placebo controlled design study to investigate the intranasal OXT (24IU) treatment in 52 healthy male subjects using working memory task. The subjects were told that oxytocin would increase the performance by a male experimenter.

Memory performance was included as dependant factor. All subjects completed a range of questionnaires measuring personality and affective traits and levels of anxiety: State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Interpersonal Trust Scale(ITS).

Enrollment: 224 patients

Sex: Male

Ages: 18 to 30 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Healthy subjects without past or current psychiatric or neurological disorder

Exclusion criteria

• history of head injury;
• claustrophobia;
• medical or psychiatric illness.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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224 participants in 2 patient groups, including a placebo group

Oxytocin

Experimental group

Description:

Oxytocin nasal spray

Treatment:

Drug: Oxytocin

Placebo

Placebo Comparator group

Description:

Placebo nasal spray

Treatment:

Drug: Placebo