Comparison of Couple-Based PTSD Treatment and Couple-Based PTSD Education
| Status: | Active, not recruiting |
|---|---|
| Conditions: | Psychiatric |
| Therapuetic Areas: | Psychiatry / Psychology |
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 18 - 70 |
| Updated: | 4/21/2016 |
| Start Date: | August 2010 |
| End Date: | May 2016 |
Couples Treatment of PTSD in OEF/OIF Veterans
The study is designed to evaluate the efficacy of a novel couple-based treatment for PTSD,
called Structured Approach Therapy, to decrease PTSD and improve the marital and social
functioning of Iraqi war Veterans and their partners. The effectiveness of couples therapy
will be compared with the effectiveness of a couple-based educational intervention.
called Structured Approach Therapy, to decrease PTSD and improve the marital and social
functioning of Iraqi war Veterans and their partners. The effectiveness of couples therapy
will be compared with the effectiveness of a couple-based educational intervention.
The goal of the proposed study is to test the efficacy of a novel couple-based PTSD
treatment, called Structured Approach Therapy, by randomly assigning 57 Iraqi war Veterans
and their partners to either a 12-15 session Structured Approach Therapy program, or to a
12-15 session PTSD Family Education comparison condition. The efficacy of the two
experimental conditions will be ascertained by obtaining measures of PTSD severity from
Veterans and measures of relationship functioning and emotion regulation from Veterans and
their partners prior to treatment, immediately after treatment, and three months after the
last treatment session. The investigators will test the hypothesis that couples
participating in Structured Approach Therapy will show significantly greater improvements on
all three clinical outcome measures than couples participating in PTSD Family Education.
These hypotheses will be tested with an intent-to-treat analysis using general linear mixed
models with main effects of treatment, time (baseline, end of treatment, and 12 week
follow-up), and treatment by time interactions to model the longitudinal trajectories of the
outcome, separately for the Veterans and their partners. The objectives of the Structured
Approach Therapy intervention are to decrease PTSD severity, improve relationship and family
functioning, and decrease problems in emotion regulation in a group of young Veterans at
risk for developing chronic PTSD, and to reduce emotional distress and relationship and
family problems in their partners.
treatment, called Structured Approach Therapy, by randomly assigning 57 Iraqi war Veterans
and their partners to either a 12-15 session Structured Approach Therapy program, or to a
12-15 session PTSD Family Education comparison condition. The efficacy of the two
experimental conditions will be ascertained by obtaining measures of PTSD severity from
Veterans and measures of relationship functioning and emotion regulation from Veterans and
their partners prior to treatment, immediately after treatment, and three months after the
last treatment session. The investigators will test the hypothesis that couples
participating in Structured Approach Therapy will show significantly greater improvements on
all three clinical outcome measures than couples participating in PTSD Family Education.
These hypotheses will be tested with an intent-to-treat analysis using general linear mixed
models with main effects of treatment, time (baseline, end of treatment, and 12 week
follow-up), and treatment by time interactions to model the longitudinal trajectories of the
outcome, separately for the Veterans and their partners. The objectives of the Structured
Approach Therapy intervention are to decrease PTSD severity, improve relationship and family
functioning, and decrease problems in emotion regulation in a group of young Veterans at
risk for developing chronic PTSD, and to reduce emotional distress and relationship and
family problems in their partners.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Exposure to at least one combat-related stressful event during combat deployment,
- Current diagnostic criteria for PTSD for that event, and
- Veteran is in a committed relationship and living with an opposite sex partner for at
least six months.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Current psychotic symptoms in either partner,
- Current diagnosis of alcohol or drug dependence in either partner,
- History of recent physical assault/abuse,
- Currently receiving an evidence-based PTSD treatment (exposure-based or cognitive
processing therapy)
- Currently receiving couples therapy or family therapy
We found this trial at
1
site
Click here to add this to my saved trials
