Post-traumatic Stress Disorders
Conditions
Brief summary
This research study is designed to investigate the effects of a simple cognitive task (a memory reactivation cue following by playing the computer game Tetris) on flashbacks and other post-traumatic stress symptoms after a road traffic accident. Patients presenting to a hospital emergency department soon after a road traffic accident will be randomly allocated to either the simple cognitive task intervention or usual care. Participants will be followed up at one week and one month. It is predicted that participants given the simple cognitive task intervention will develop fewer flashbacks and less severe clinical symptoms than those who are not. This will inform the potential future development of a simple technique to prevent distressing psychological symptoms after a traumatic event.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALSimple cognitive task
Sponsors
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust
National Institute for Health Research, United Kingdom
Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit
University of Oxford
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Aged 18 or over * Experienced or witnessed a road traffic accident (as a driver, passenger, motorcyclist, cyclist or pedestrian) * Met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM-IV) criterion A1 for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (experienced, witnessed, or confronted with actual or threatened death or serious injury) * Can be seen in the emergency department within 6 hours of leaving the scene of the accident * Report memory of the accident * Fluent in written and spoken English * Alert and orientated, Glasgow Coma Scale score (GCS) = 15 * Have sufficient physical mobility to play a computer game on the intervention platform (a Nintendo DS) at the point of taking informed consent * Willing and able to provide informed consent and complete study procedures * Willing and able to be contacted following discharge to complete follow-up assessments
Exclusion criteria
* Loss of consciousness of \> 5 minutes * Current intoxication * Report a history of severe mental illness * Current substance abuse or neurological condition * Currently suicidal
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Number of flashbacks recorded by participants in a Flashback Record in the week after the accident | Within one week after the accident (Flashback Record will be returned to a researcher at one week follow-up) |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Post-traumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale (PDS) | One week and one month follow-up |
| Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R) | One week and one month follow-up |
| Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) | One week and one month follow-up |
Other
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Feedback Questionnaire | One month follow-up |
Countries
United Kingdom
Outcome results
None listed