Treatment Effects of Narrative Exposure Therapy

University of Bergen

Status and phase: Unknown; Phase 2

Conditions: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Treatments: Behavioral: Narrative Exposure Therapy

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT00660439

NET 40

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study compares Narrative Exposure Therapy with a Waiting list control group, both consists of traumatized patients with diagnosed Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. The main aim is to investigate if the patients psychiatric symptoms and levels of the stress hormone cortisol will improve more after Narrative Exposure Therapy than the Waiting list (i.e. no intervention).

Full description

In this study we want to compare Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) to Waiting list controls. Adult patients with diagnosed Posttraumatic Stress Disorder following different types of trauma, will be included. Clinicians in psychiatric outpatient clinics will treat patients with NET, either immediately after assessment, or after a second assessment 3 months later. All patients will also be assessed 1 and 6 months after treatment completion. All patients will be assessed for psychiatric symptoms by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (version 5.0.0) and the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Patients will also answer several questionnaires (IES-R, SCL-90, BDI-II, DES and UCL). Baseline level of the stress hormone cortisol will be collected in saliva for measuring the diurnal cycle. We will investigate if patients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder will show more symptom improvement with NET than those on the waiting list (i.e. no intervention) in addition to measuring potential differences in cortisol between the groups.

Enrollment: 40 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Age above 18 years
• Understands, speaks and writes Norwegian
• Informed, written consent

Exclusion criteria

• Active psychosis
• Active suicidality
• Serious self mutilation
• Active alcohol or drug abuse
• Serious dissociative symptoms
• Disease in nervous system or head injury
• Hormonal disease
• Pregnancy

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Non-Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

40 participants in 2 patient groups

A

Experimental group

Description:

Treatment group, receives Narrative Exposure Therapy immediately after first assessment. Patients are assessed 1 and 6 months after treatment.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Narrative Exposure Therapy

B

No Intervention group

Description:

Waiting list control group, receives no intervention for 3 months after first assessment. A second assessment is then administered and patients receives Narrative Exposure Therapy. Patients are assessed 1 and 6 months after treatment.