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TerminatedNCT00362661Updated Jan 12, 2010

Low-dose Cortisol in Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

An interventional study of Cortisol in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, sponsored by University of Zurich. Terminated at 1 site in Switzerland. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 60 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2010-01-12.

Sponsored by University of Zurich · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Why this study was terminated
Recruitment: Insufficient number of patients eligible for enrollment
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
20
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 60 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The aim of this prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study is to determine the therapeutic efficacy of low-dose cortisol for symptoms of chronic posttraumatic stress disorder.

02

Conditions studied

  • Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Keywords

  • PTSD
  • cortisol
  • memory
  • treatment
03

In context

Stress Disorders, Traumatic

1,147 studies on the registry are indexed under Stress Disorders, Traumatic; 108 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 20 is below the median of 60 across 908 interventional studies indexed under Stress Disorders, Traumatic.

Browse Stress Disorders, Traumatic studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Zurich is the lead sponsor of 1,030 studies on the registry; 130 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 60 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Female and male patients with chronic PTSD due to adult trauma; PTSD is diagnosed according to the DSM-IV, as measured with the CAPS
  • Age between 18 and 60

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of disease states representing contraindications to glucocorticoid therapy (tuberculosis, gastritis, gastric- and duodenal ulcers, Cushing's disease, osteoporosis, hypertension, pregnancy (to exclude with a pregnancy test) and lactation, glaucoma, diabetes mellitus, thrombophilia, acute or chronic infections, hyperthyroidism, cirrhosis)
  • Severe or chronic somatic diseases
  • Topic glucocorticoid therapy (for large skin parts)
  • Inhaled glucocorticoids
  • Current psychotic, bipolar, substance-related, or severe personality disorder
  • Current severe depressive disorder
  • Severe cognitive impairment or a history of organic mental disorder
  • Evidence of PTSD or depression immediately prior to the index trauma
  • Prominent current suicidal or homicidal ideation
  • Asylum seeking status
  • Body weight >20% above or below normal range
  • Changes in psychopharmacologic or psychotherapeutic management less than 8 weeks before start of the study
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Crossover assignment
Masking
Quadruple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
20 participants (estimated)

Interventions

  • DrugCortisol

    Cortisol 10 mg/d for 3 months

    Also known as: Cortisol (10 mg), Galepharm, Küsnacht, Switzerland

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. CAPS CGI

    Time frame: 1 year

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Zurich
    Zurich, 8091, Switzerland
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Aerni A, Traber R, Hock C, Roozendaal B, Schelling G, Papassotiropoulos A, Nitsch RM, Schnyder U, de Quervain DJ. Low-dose cortisol for symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Am J Psychiatry. 2004 Aug;161(8):1488-90. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.161.8.1488. PubMed 15285979 ↗
09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jan 12, 2010, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT00362661
Lead sponsor
University of Zurich
First posted
Aug 10, 2006
Start date
Jun 2007
Primary completion
Dec 2009
Completion
Dec 2009
Last update
Jan 12, 2010

Study contacts

Dominique de Quervain, MD
principal investigator · Division of Psychiatry Research, University of Zurich, Lenggstr. 31, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
Ulrich Schnyder, MD
principal investigator · Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Zurich, Culmannstrasse 8, 8091 Zürich, Switzerland
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is terminated, as verified in Jan 2010. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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