Clinical Research Directory
Browse clinical research sites, groups, and studies.
Fear and Avoidance in PTSD Patients
Sponsor: The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
Summary
The purpose of this research study is to study how the brain learns to avoid certain stimuli or situations using an experimental paradigm. The big goal is to measure brain responses and subject's feelings and expectations when they are learning to actively avoid experimental stimuli, and how fear extinction learning and monetary cost can change how and when subjects are to avoid.
Official title: Neural Correlates of Active Avoidance Learning and Their Interactions With Fear Extinction Mechanisms in PTSD Patients
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - 70 Years
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
300
Start Date
2021-09-09
Completion Date
2027-01
Last Updated
2025-04-11
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Conditions
Interventions
Fear Conditioning
Participants will be administered increasing intensities of mild electric shock via electrodes connected to the foot. New Biopac stimulators that can deliver higher shock intensity, provided participants agreement will be used to assure adequate conditioning levels. Stimulation is measures in milliamps (mA), and each delivered stimulation will be 0.5 seconds long (500 milliseconds). To colored (blue, red, \& yellow) light stimuli (CS). The light stimulus is followed by a shock or no shock depending on color.
Avoidance conditioning
Via button pressing. Only one stimulus-CS will enable control over experiencing the shock: the participant can press the button during the first 2 seconds of the light presentation to avoid the shock.
Pavlovian fear extinction learning
After avoidance conditioning, the CS+ associated with avoidance responding appears with no button to press and no shock is administered.
Willingness to pay to avoid shock
On the next day, participants receive a monetary stipend to use to pay to guarantee that they are not to receive any shocks if they press a button from the CS+. This and all previously described experimental phases noted above will occur inside of the fMRI scanner.
Locations (1)
UTHealth Houston
Houston, Texas, United States