The Efficacy of Stellate Ganglion Block as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Therapy: A Pilot Study
| Status: | Completed |
|---|---|
| Conditions: | Orthopedic, Psychiatric |
| Therapuetic Areas: | Psychiatry / Psychology, Orthopedics / Podiatry |
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 18 - 90 |
| Updated: | 4/2/2016 |
| Start Date: | February 2012 |
| End Date: | February 2013 |
The Efficacy of Stellate Ganglion Block as PTSD Therapy: A Pilot Study
RATIONALE: A stellate ganglion nerve block may help relieve symptoms of post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD).
PURPOSE: This pilot clinical trial is studying the efficacy of a stellate ganglion nerve
block in veterans to reduce the symptoms of PTSD in relatively long-standing (Vietnam era)
induced or relatively recently induced PTSD (from deployment in Afghanistan or Iraq as part
of Operations Enduring Freedom (OEF), Iraqi Freedom (OIF), and New Dawn (OND).
stress disorder (PTSD).
PURPOSE: This pilot clinical trial is studying the efficacy of a stellate ganglion nerve
block in veterans to reduce the symptoms of PTSD in relatively long-standing (Vietnam era)
induced or relatively recently induced PTSD (from deployment in Afghanistan or Iraq as part
of Operations Enduring Freedom (OEF), Iraqi Freedom (OIF), and New Dawn (OND).
Objectives:
1. Stellate ganglion blocks will be performed in a small sample (n = 12) of the local
patient population that suffers from PTSD in order to replicate other preliminary
findings.
2. The parameters that lead to a successful treatment response will be evaluated by
comparing and contrasting the results obtained in younger (n=6) OEF/OIF generation
veterans versus older (n=6) Vietnam generation veterans.
3. The individual difference variables that might lead to successful treatment responses
will be studied by obtaining correlative measures of psychological and psychometric
data and responses to standardized tests.
Research Design:
This is an open label unblinded clinical pilot case series study to determine the efficacy
of stellate ganglion blockade for relief of PTSD symptoms in the Long Beach VA healthcare
population.
1. Stellate ganglion blocks will be performed in a small sample (n = 12) of the local
patient population that suffers from PTSD in order to replicate other preliminary
findings.
2. The parameters that lead to a successful treatment response will be evaluated by
comparing and contrasting the results obtained in younger (n=6) OEF/OIF generation
veterans versus older (n=6) Vietnam generation veterans.
3. The individual difference variables that might lead to successful treatment responses
will be studied by obtaining correlative measures of psychological and psychometric
data and responses to standardized tests.
Research Design:
This is an open label unblinded clinical pilot case series study to determine the efficacy
of stellate ganglion blockade for relief of PTSD symptoms in the Long Beach VA healthcare
population.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Include significant PTSD symptoms with severe hyper-arousal symptoms.
- Clinician Administered PTSD Scales (CAPS) score, with a total score ≥ 50 needed for
enrollment.
- Hyper-arousal severity identified by a high score on the CAPS D scale and a ≥ 10 beat
per minute increase in heart rate during the subject's verbal recollection of a
standardized version of their traumatic exposure.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Include psychiatric and medical conditions that would make patients poor candidates
for an outpatient procedure.
- Subjects must be able to be cooperative for the procedure and free of significant
medical problems that would pose a constant threat to life.
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