Women's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Research Study

VA Office of Research and Development50 enrolled

Overview

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between trauma and startle. The investigators are also looking at the effect of menstrual phase on this relationship.

The investigators are trying to understand if there is a relationship between the experience of traumatic events such as those experienced by people with post traumatic stress disorder and reactivity to startling noises or mild threats. So, the investigators are looking at startle reflex, heart rate, and stress hormone responses to short noises and small shocks in people exposed to trauma and who either do or do not have PTSD. Additionally, the investigators will be looking at how the menstrual cycle impacts these processes. The investigators know that women have twice the risk for developing PTSD and some research suggests that stress hormones change during the menstrual cycle and may have an effect on risk.

Study Type

OBSERVATIONAL

Enrollment

Conditions

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Eligibility

Sex: FEMALEMin age: 18 YearsMax age: 55 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Women, ages 18-55 years old who have a regular menstrual cycle and who can come in to participate in the afternoon Exclusion Criteria: * Long-term medications, oral or steroid contraceptives, irregular menstrual cycle

Locations (1)

VA Boston Healthcare System Jamaica Plain Campus, Jamaica Plain, MA

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Prepulse Inhibition

To calculate prepulse inhibition (PPI), first an O-EMG response score (O-EMG-R) for each trial was calculated. O-EMGR was measured in microvolts and each value was subjected to a square root transformation. For each participant, the mean O-EMG-R scores were calculated for both startle alone and prepulse + startle trials across the entire session. PPI is a ratio and was calculated by the formula below: PPI=(mean OEMG-R score on prepulse+startle trials-mean OEMG-R on Startle alone trials)/mean OEMG-R on startle alone trials. A negative value on this PPI ratio is indicative of greater prepulse inhibition. Means and SEs below reflect estimated means and SEs for the PTSD group and trauma control group from the ANOVA conducted with menstrual phase and the PTSD group X menstrual phase interaction included in the model.

Time frame: This measure was assessed twice for each participant, once in the midluteal phase of the menstrual cycle and once in the early follicular phase of the menstrual cycle, up to approximately 20 days apart.

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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