Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for Perinatal Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

NCT07060144 · University of Texas at Austin

Recruiting

In plain English

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About this study

Pregnant women with a primary diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) score \> 33) will be randomized to receive conventional cognitive processing therapy (CPT) (60-min session once/week for 12 weeks) or massed CPT (mCPT) (an intensive schedule of 12 60-min sessions over 5 days, approximately 2-3 sessions per day) via telemedicine, for treatment of PTSD. The research aims will be three-fold: (1) Evaluate the relative efficacy and tolerability of CPT vs. mCPT for treatment of perinatal PTSD and depression; (2) Determine the effect of CPT upon maternal-infant attachment and interaction; (3) Collect pilot data of obstetric and neonatal outcomes among those receiving the two CPT delivery schedules.

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion Criteria: * Female, ages 18-46, Pregnant (\< 25 weeks), able to read and write in English, History of at least 1 criterion A trauma, Primary diagnosis of PTSD (confirmed by SCID), Psychotropic medications must be stable with no changes ≥ 2 weeks (≥ 6 weeks for fluoxetine), and no medication changes can be made during the course of therapy Exclusion Criteria: * Not currently pregnant, Diagnosis of bipolar disorder, psychotic disorders, Suicidal ideation with plan or intent, Substance use disorder, Regular benzodiazepine use (\> 4x weekly)

Study design

Enrollment target: 60 participants

Allocation: randomized

Masking: none

Age groups: adult

Timeline

Starts: 2025-07

Estimated completion: 2026-12

Last updated: 2025-07-11

Interventions

Behavioral: Regular CPTBehavioral: Massed CPT

Primary outcomes

• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) (Baseline, then at 1 week, 4 weeks, 8 weeks, 12 weeks, and 16 weeks following initiation of treatment in both the mCPT and traditional CPT groups)

Sponsor

University of Texas at Austin · other

Contacts & investigators

ContactResearch Associate I · contact · ambreen.rana@austin.utexas.edu · 512-766-6209

InvestigatorErin Richardson · principal_investigator, University of Texas at Austin

All locations (1)

University of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical School, Department of PsychiatryRecruiting

Austin, Texas, United States

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