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Impact of GABA-Enhancing Agents on Cortical GABA Concentrations Across the Menstrual Cycle in Women

The Impact of GABA-Enhancing Agents on Cortical GABA Concentrations Across the Menstrual Cycle in Women

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT00676026
Enrollment
8
Registered
2008-05-12
Start date
2005-05-31
Completion date
2009-02-28
Last updated
2017-06-01

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Healthy

Keywords

menses, women, healthy controls, Healthy females with regular menstrual cycles

Brief summary

The goal of this series of challenge studies is to examine the impact of menstrual cycle phase on cortical GABA response to administration of agents with either direct (benzodiazepines) or indirect (progesterone, fluoxetine) GABA modulating properties. While the impact of these agents on cortical GABA levels in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is of interest, this study is designed primarily for those women without a psychiatric illness.

Interventions

DRUGFluoxetine

Fluoxetine 20 mg by mouth in the follicular and luteal phase of the menstrual cycle per participant.

DRUGZolpidem

Zolpidem 10 mg by mouth in the follicular and luteal phase of the menstrual cycle per participant.

DRUGProgesterone

Progesterone 800 mg by mouth will be administered to each participant once in the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle.

Sponsors

University of Pennsylvania
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
18 Years to 45 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Women ages 18-45 and able to give voluntary written informed consent; * Regular menstrual periods of 24-35 days in length; * Body mass index 18.5 to 30 kg/m2; * No past or present DSM-IV psychiatric or substance dependence diagnosis by structured diagnostic interview (SCID-NP); no substance abuse history within the previous 2 years; * Absence of mood symptoms across the menstrual cycle during one month of prospective daily ratings with the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP); the DRSP is based on the DSM-IV research criteria for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and has been used in numerous studies to confirm the presence or absence of significant premenstrual mood and behavioral difficulties; * Must be willing and able to participate in at least three of the four challenge paradigms.

Exclusion criteria

* Medical, neurologic or cerebrovascular disorder (CVA, seizure disorder, etc.); * Family history of first degree relative with an Axis I psychiatric or substance dependence disorder (excepting alcohol and nicotine) (per subject report); * Current treatment with psychoactive medication; * Diabetes controlled by means other than diet; * Use of steroid contraceptives (any method involving hormones) within the previous 4 months; * Habitual consumption of more than 7 alcoholic drinks per week or more than 2 drinks on any particular occasion; must be willing to abstain from alcohol consumption for 48 hours prior to each 1H-MRS scan; * Implanted metallic devices.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
To Determine the Impact of GABA-A Receptor Agonists (Benzodiazepines, Allopregnanolone) and Other GABA-modulating Agents (Fluoxetine) on Cortical GABA Levels by Menstrual Cycle Phase as Measured Using 1H-MRS in Healthy Controls.Each medication will be administered 2 times during a 1-month menstrual cycle.This study was conducted at Yale University almost two decades ago. Our group at the University of Pennsylvania only has very basic information about this study. This includes the number of participants, which was 8, and the fact that no adverse events occurred. Staff members at the University of Pennsylvania do not have access to any additional study data. The contact person who initially entered this study protocol information is no longer at the University of Pennsylvania and we are unable to contact for additional information.

Countries

United States

Participant flow

Recruitment details

Participants were recruited at an outpatient research facility located at Yale University in New Haven, CT.

Participants by arm

ArmCount
All Participants
This study was conducted at Yale University almost two decades ago. Our group at the University of Pennsylvania only has very basic information about this study. This includes the number of participants, which was 18, and the fact that no adverse events occurred. Staff members at the University of Pennsylvania do not have access to any additional study data. The contact person who initially entered this study protocol information is no longer at the University of Pennsylvania and we are unable to contact for additional information.
0
Total0

Adverse events

Event typeEG000
affected / at risk
deaths
Total, all-cause mortality
0 / 8
other
Total, other adverse events
0 / 8
serious
Total, serious adverse events
0 / 8

Outcome results

Primary

To Determine the Impact of GABA-A Receptor Agonists (Benzodiazepines, Allopregnanolone) and Other GABA-modulating Agents (Fluoxetine) on Cortical GABA Levels by Menstrual Cycle Phase as Measured Using 1H-MRS in Healthy Controls.

This study was conducted at Yale University almost two decades ago. Our group at the University of Pennsylvania only has very basic information about this study. This includes the number of participants, which was 8, and the fact that no adverse events occurred. Staff members at the University of Pennsylvania do not have access to any additional study data. The contact person who initially entered this study protocol information is no longer at the University of Pennsylvania and we are unable to contact for additional information.

Time frame: Each medication will be administered 2 times during a 1-month menstrual cycle.

Population: UPenn does not have access to the data collected for this study. We are only using the information entered in the protocol section for very basic details in the results section (i.e, number of participants completed). The original contact person for this protocol is not reachable.

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026