PTSD
Conditions
Keywords
PTSD, written exposure therapy, randomized controlled trial, adolescents
Brief summary
The study aims to examine the effectiveness of the group-delivered guided written exposure therapy (GWE) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD among Chinese adolescents with a randomized controlled trial. The study will recruit 50 participants, with 25 randomized to the GWE group and 25 randomized to the waiting list (WL) group. The GWE intervention consists of 5-8 group sessions. The primary outcome PCL-5 ( PTSD Checklist-5) and ITQ-CA (International Trauma Questionnaire-Child and Adolescent Version) will be administered on baseline, post-treatment, 1-month follow-up, 3-month follow-up assessments.
Interventions
guided written exposure therapy is a manualized exposure-based therapy program consisting of 5-8 sequential sessions. The interval between every 2 consecutive sessions is 0-2 days. There will be 5-8 group-delivered sessions in total (only one index trauma will be discussed), and 1-2 weeks to complete. The first and last sessions are scheduled to last for 1.5 hours each, while the other sessions will be 50 minutes in duration.
BEHAVIORALWaiting-List (WL) condition
Participants assigned to WL will be asked to not work with other therapists or seek additional treatment for trauma-related difficulties during the 2-week WL period. After the one-month follow-up of the WET-R group, they will receive the same treatment (Group-Delivered guided written exposure therapy-revised version).WL participants will also be given contact information to use in case of worsening symptoms or increasing distress.
Sponsors
Peking University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
10 Years to 18 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
1. Adolescents aged 10-18 years. 2. Meeting full or subthreshold PTSD (up to one symptom missing). 3. If taking psychotropic medication, currently stabilized on psychotropic medication for at least four weeks. 4. Capable of writing and understanding written instructions.
Exclusion criteria
1. Presence of severe psychopathology necessitating immediate medical attention 2. Moderate to high suicide risk (e.g., intent or plan to attempt suicide in the near future 3. Evidence of a moderate or severe traumatic brain injury 4. Currently undergoing psychotherapy specifically for PTSD.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| PTSD Checklist-5 (PCL-5) | baseline,post treatment(2 weeks), 6 weeks, 14 weeks | PCL-5 was a 20-item self-report scale that assesses PTSD DSM-5 diagnosis and symptom severity in the past month. Items were rated on a 5-point Likert scale from 0 ("not at all") to 4("extremely").The Chinese version of PCL-5 has shown good psychometric properties in trauma-affected Chinese children. |
| CPTSD symptoms | baseline,post treatment(2 weeks), 6 weeks, 14 weeks | CPTSD symptoms include two parts: PTSD symptoms were assessed using six PCL-5 items mapped to ICD-11 domains: re-experiencing (items 2 and 3), avoidance (items 6 and 7), and sense of current threat (items 17 and 18). Disturbances in self-organization (DSO) were measured using the 6-item DSO subscale of the International Trauma Questionnaire-Child and Adolescent Version (ITQ-CA), which has demonstrated good validity in Chinese adolescent samples. The resulting 12-item composite yielded total scores ranging from 0 to 48, consistent with ITQ-CA scoring conventions. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) | baseline,post treatment(2 weeks), 6 weeks, 14 weeks | Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) is a 9-item self-report measure of depression severity over the preceding two weeks. Items are rated on a 4-point scale (0 = not at all to 3 = nearly every day), yielding total scores from 0 to 27. The Chinese version has demonstrated good psychometric properties in adolescents. |
| Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale | baseline,post treatment(2 weeks), 6 weeks, 14 weeks | Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7), evaluates symptom severity over the preceding two weeks. Items are rated on a 4-point scale (0 = not at all to 3 = nearly every day), yielding total scores from 0 to 21. The Chinese version has demonstrated robust psychometric properties in adolescent samples. |
| Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) | baseline,post treatment(2 weeks), 6 weeks, 14 weeks | Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a 25-item self-report measure covering five domains: emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, peer relationship problems, and prosocial behavior. Items are rated on a 3-point scale (0 = not true to 2 = certainly true). A total difficulties score was computed by summing the four problem subscales and the reverse-scored prosocial subscale, yielding scores from 0 to 50. |
Countries
China
Outcome results
None listed