Impulsivity, irritability and compulsivity are cross-disorder symptom domains, which affect a significant proportion of adolescents. Predominately as part of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) but also as symptom domains without a diagnosis of ADHD, impulsivity and irritability cause serious burden. Furthermore, treatment options and their effects are limited. Previous studies with different study designs assessing micronutrients for the treatment of impulsivity / ADHD in children and adults have reported positive benefits as well as a very good tolerability. However, more research is required; in particular controlled studies with adolescents, cross-disorder approaches and studies investigating long-term effects are missing. The focus of this study is to investigate the effect of micronutrients on impulsivity, irritability and compulsivity in children and adolescents between 11 and 18 years of age with a high level of impulsivity and irritability with or without a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The investigators intend to include 210 children and adolescents (n=110 in Germany) with a high level of impulsivity and irritability. The study is divided in two phases. An initial 10-week double blind, placebo-controlled treatment phase with broad-spectrum micronutrients is followed by a 10-week open-label treatment phase. The study assessments will be performed during five study visits and a follow-up visit.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Enrollment
210
daily intake of capsules containing a blend of Vitamin B3 (NADH), Vitamin B6 (pyridoxal-5-phosphate), folic acid (5-MTHF), Vitamin B12 (methylcobalamin), Vitamin D3 (25-hydroxyvitamin D3), Magnesium (magnesium oxide), Zinc (zinc methionine), Iron (ferric phosphate), Selenium (selenomethionine), Phospholipids, L-carnitine (L-carnitine-L-tartrate)
daily intake of capsules
Central Institute of Mental Health
Mannheim, Germany
RECRUITINGresponse rate at end of placebo-controlled phase defined as CGI-I score with focus on impulsivity of 1 or 2 [=very much improved or much improved] plus reduction in Affective Reactivity Index (ARI) total score of at least 30% compared to baseline
The primary objective is to investigate the double-blind placebo controlled (10 weeks) effects of broad-spectrum micronutrients in highly impulsive children and adolescents (10-18 years; N=180 in total) with a high level of impulsivity with or without diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The primary outcome measure is the response rate at the end of the placebo-controlled phase. Response is defined as a Clinical Global Impression - Improvement score (CGI-I, Guy 1976; NIMH 1985) with a focus on impulsivity of 1 or 2 \[=very much improved or much improved\] plus a reduction in the Affective Reactivity Index (ARI, parent-rated, Stringaris et al. 2012) total score of at least 30% compared to baseline.
Time frame: 10 weeks (end of placebo-controlled phase)
Change in Clinician rating of compulsivity
Children´s Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS, Scahill et al., 1997)
Time frame: every 10 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
Change in the rating of irritability
Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10, Taylor 2015)
Time frame: every 10 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
Change in sleep problems
Sleep problems (5-item questionnaire, self-rating of sleep problems)
Time frame: every 10 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
change in motor activity (optional)
mHealth (movisens DataAnalyzer software)
Time frame: at baseline and after 10 weeks of study participation
Change in ADHD symptom severity total score
Swanson, Nolan and Pelham Rating Scale (SNAP, Swanson et al. 2001)
Time frame: every 10 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
change in rating of aggression
Retrospective Modified Overt Aggression Scale (R-MOAS, Blader et al. 2010)
Time frame: every 5 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
Rates of adverse events of the treatment groups in comparison to placebo group
Compare rates of adverse events of the treatment groups to placebo group to assess safety and tolerability
Time frame: every 5 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
change in treatment adherence
assessed by Attitudes Towards Treatment questionnaire; total score 0-108; better Outcome: lower score
Time frame: every 10 weeks over the whole study period of 20 weeks (10 weeks placebo-controlled phase followed by 10 weeks open label)
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