Intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) as a Treatment for Alcohol Use Disorder in Inpatient Treatment
Overview
- Phase
- N/A
- Intervention
- Not specified
- Conditions
- Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)
- Sponsor
- Nicholas Balderston, PhD
- Enrollment
- 42
- Locations
- 1
- Primary Endpoint
- Cue-evoked prefrontal cortex activity
- Status
- Recruiting
- Last Updated
- 9 months ago
Overview
Brief Summary
The two primary objectives of this study are to test whether intermittent theta-burst (iTBS) can affect behavioral change as compared to treatment as usual (TAU, sham) in individuals with alcohol use disorder (AUD) in inpatient substance use treatment. The secondary objective is to determine whether iTBS reduces the risk for relapse at four months compared to sham. It is hypothesized that individuals who receive iTBS treatment will show attenuated prefrontal cortex (PFC) CNS responses to alcohol related cues and reductions in risk-taking behavior and impulsivity as measured by PFC responses measured by functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRs). The proposed approach will be to measure the effect of iTBS treatment on PFC CNS response. Participants will be randomized to receive 5 days (4 x sessions/day x 600 pulses/session = 12,000 pulses) of iTBS or sham to the left dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) while being exposed to alcohol cues five minutes prior to treatment and during treatment. The investigators will target the Beam/F3 scalp location and use the TMS Navigator Research Premium stereotaxic system for neuronavigation. PFC response data will be gathered using fNIRs measuring cue reactivity, risk-taking (Balloon Analog Risk Test), and impulsiveness (Go No Go task). The primary outcomes will be the mean changes in pre-post PFC response data gathered using the fNIRs sessions. The rationale for this approach is that TBS can be delivered over a shorter time frame than rTMS and may require fewer sessions, allowing for a better fit within a 28-day inpatient treatment stay.
Investigators
Nicholas Balderston, PhD
Assistant Professor
University of Pennsylvania
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria
- •Provision of signed and dated informed consent form.
- •Stated willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study.
- •Male or female, aged \>21and \<75
- •Right-handed
- •Diagnosed with an AUD disorder seeking treatment at Caron Treatment Centers and planning to be enrolled in residential treatment for a minimum of 28 days.
- •Ability to obtain an MT at the first session.
- •Women of childbearing potential must consent to use a medically accepted method of birth control (e.g., implants, injectables, oral contraceptives, IUD, sexual abstinence, or vasectomized partner) or to abstain from sexual intercourse only during the five treatment days of the study.
Exclusion Criteria
- •Age \<21 or \>75 years.
- •Women who are pregnant, planning pregnancy, breastfeeding, or unwilling to use adequate contraceptive measures.
- •Evidence or history of a significant neurological disorder including moderate-severe head trauma, stroke, Parkinson's disease, or other movement disorder (except benign essential tremor), epilepsy. History of seizures (except juvenile febrile seizures or any condition/concurrent medication that could notably lower seizure threshold. This may include traumatic brain injury (TBI) if the TBI places the individual at an elevated risk of seizure.
- •Have a cardiac pacemaker.
- •Have an implanted device or metal in the brain.
- •Have a cochlear implant.
- •Have a current amnestic disorder, delirium, or other cognitive disorder.
- •Previous treatment with TMS.
- •Left-handed
- •Suicidal ideation within the past month, or history of suicide attempt(s) within the past year.
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Cue-evoked prefrontal cortex activity
Time Frame: 24 hours before first iTBS session and 24 hours after last iTBS session
Individuals will undergo a cue reactivity task composed of four stimulus categories: general alcohol cues; alcohol cues specific to patient alcohol choice preferences; natural reward cues; and emotionally neutral cues (e.g., pictures of everyday objects like lamps, pens) will be monitored with Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) over the prefrontal cortex. fNIRS measures the amount of infrared light absorbed by the brain, which differs as a function of ongoing brain activity. The magnitude of this signal (absorption factor) will be calculated for the conditions described above.
Secondary Outcomes
- Risk-taking(24 hours before first iTBS session and 24 hours after last iTBS session)
- Impulsiveness(24 hours before first iTBS session and 24 hours after last iTBS session)