What the trial was testing
The trial enrolled 65 patients with ptsd. The study was sponsored by VA Office of Research and Development and tracked outcomes across the full group of patients who matched the trial's eligibility profile.
It was initial testing (phase 2). Trials at this stage are designed to produce evidence regulators and physicians can act on — not just observations to follow up later.
What the results showed
Veterans receiving brain stimulation with VR had greater PTSD symptom reduction at one month.
JAMA psychiatry · 2024 · NCT03372460
These findings — that brain stimulation plus VR led to bigger symptom improvements than VR alone — were published in the JAMA psychiatry and represent the headline result of the study.
Researchers tracked outcomes across 65 patients enrolled in the trial. The result was consistent enough across the group that the team felt confident reporting it.
What this means for patients
For patients with ptsd, this result changes the calculus on what to ask their care team about. Whether it changes day-to-day care depends on factors like disease subtype, prior treatments, and where the patient is in their care journey.
What you can do now
This was a mid-stage study and the combination treatment is not yet FDA-approved. The research involved only 54 veterans and needs larger studies to confirm the results. If you have PTSD, talk to your doctor about approved treatments like trauma-focused therapy or medications, and ask about any open research studies testing this approach.
Eligibility for the treatments mentioned above depends on specific test results and clinical history. Bring this summary, the trial name, and your most recent labs or pathology report to your next visit.
Open ptsd trials
Multifaceted Intervention to Restore Resilience and Overcome Risk
The MIRROR study will compare the effectiveness of two interventions in improving emotion regulation and reducing PTSD symptoms in female Veterans with military sexual trauma (MST) and/or intimate partner violence (IPV) and co-occurring brain injury.
Boosting Refugee Integration Through Psychological Intervention
Refugees and asylum seekers (RAS) face numerous stressors and adversities which put them at risk for developing mental health problems. However, access to adequate mental health care in host countries is limited. To address this problem, the World Health Organization (WHO) introduced Problem Management Plus (PM+), a short, low-intensity psychological intervention administered by non-professionals, aiming to alleviate common mental disorders among crisis-affected communities. The present study aims at expanding the existing PM+ intervention by providing additional booster sessions and homework reminders while evaluating its effectiveness and implementation in the public health system.