An interventional study of Intensive panic control treatment without parent involvement and Intensive panic control treatment with parent involvement in Panic Disorder and Agoraphobia, sponsored by Boston University Charles River Campus. Completed at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 12 Years to 17 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-21.
Sponsored by Boston University Charles River Campus · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
This study will evaluate the effectiveness of intensive cognitive behavioral therapy in treating adolescents with panic disorder with agoraphobia.
Panic disorder (PD) in adolescents is a prevalent and chronic anxiety disorder. People with PD experience unexpected attacks of fear, along with elevated heart rate, dizziness, faintness, weakness, and increased sweating. During these panic attacks, people may feel numbness in their hands, flushed or chilled, nauseous, or pain in the chest, and they may lose touch with reality. PD can lead to substantial social impairment for adolescents, including avoidance of school, independent activities, and peer involvement. When PD progresses so far that a person avoids public places where a panic attack might occur, the person is said to have a condition known as agoraphobia. Weekly sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) appear to be effective in treating panic disorder with agoraphobia (PDA). However, many adolescents with PDA and their families report the need for a more immediate relief from the disorder. This study will evaluate the effectiveness of intensive CBT in treating adolescents with PDA.
Participants in this single blind study will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions: intensive CBT treatment including family members, intensive CBT treatment without family members, or a waitlist control group. All participants in the intensive CBT treatment groups will undergo 8 days of intensive CBT, for a total of 6 sessions. On Days 1 through 3 of treatment, participants will attend daily, 2-hour CBT sessions. The CBT sessions will include psychoeducation about anxiety, tactics to restructure anxiety-provoking thoughts, and exposure to bodily sensations that trigger panic. On Days 4 and 5, participants will meet with a therapist to learn ways to approach previously feared situations. On Days 6 and 7, participants will continue working independently or with family members to solidify skills. On Day 8, participants will attend a final 2-hour session to consolidate skills, review the independent weekend activities, and discuss ways to apply skills to the home environment. Parents of participants in the parental involvement group will attend the last 30 minutes of sessions, complete homework assignments, learn ways to coach their children through episodes, and participate in selected exposures. After 6 weeks of waitlist, participants in the waitlist control group will receive active treatment following the same procedures as the initial active treatment. All participants will be assessed at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment.
270 studies on the registry are indexed under Panic Disorder; 37 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 63 is below the median of 77 across 215 interventional studies indexed under Panic Disorder.
Browse Panic Disorder studies →Boston University Charles River Campus is the lead sponsor of 159 studies on the registry; 33 are open to participants now.
Of its 14 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 9 (64%) have results posted.
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Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
The American Psychiatric Association’s manual of mental health diagnoses. DSM-5 (2013, revised as DSM-5-TR in 2022) replaced DSM-IV, and some studies still name the older edition. “Meets DSM criteria for …” means diagnosed by that edition’s diagnostic criteria, usually by a clinician in an interview.
DSM diagnostic criteria
The American Psychiatric Association’s manual of mental health diagnoses. DSM-5 (2013, revised as DSM-5-TR in 2022) replaced DSM-IV, and some studies still name the older edition. “Meets DSM criteria for …” means diagnosed by that edition’s diagnostic criteria, usually by a clinician in an interview.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants will receive intensive cognitive behavioral therapy treatment without parent involvement
Behavioral: Intensive panic control treatment without parent involvement
Participants will receive intensive cognitive behavioral therapy treatment with parent involvement
Behavioral: Intensive panic control treatment with parent involvement
Waitlist control group
Other: Waitlist control
Intensive panic control treatment without parent involvement is an 8-day, intensive form of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with exposure, including 15-20 hours of direct therapist contact. The basic treatment components are psychoeducation about anxiety, restructuring anxiety-provoking thoughts, exposure to bodily sensations that trigger panic, and in vivo exposures.
Intensive panic control treatment with parent involvement involves the same form of intensive CBT, but with direct parent involvement. Parents will attend the last 30 minutes of didactic sessions, complete homework assignments, learn ways to coach their children, and participate in selected exposures.
Waitlist control participants will receive active treatment (treatment with or without family involvement) after 6 weeks of waitlist.
Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule-Child and Parent Versions: Clinical Severity Rating, Agoraphobia Ratings, Panic Attack Frequency Scores, and Internal Sensation Anxiety Ratings
Diagnostic Interview of anxiety disorders and related disorders in childhood and adolescence. The ADIS-IV-C/P was used as an independent evaluator measure. The ADIS-IV C/P results in a 0-8 clinical severity rating of the child's primary presenting problems. The ADIS will also be used for ratings of distress and functional interference caused by panic disorder and related disorders. We will also use data on the number of panic attacks during the preceding week.
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Panic Disorder Severity Scale-Child Version
This measure assesses symptoms of panic disorder in adolescents. It is a 7-item self report measure that assesses 1) panic frequency 2) distress associated with panic attacks, 3) severity of anticipatory anxiety, 4) agoraphobia and avoidance, 5) fear associated with the physical symptoms that accompany panic attacks, 6) work and 7) social impairments related to panic. The sum of these seven items yields an overall PDA severity form. The PDSS uses a 5 point ordinal scale (0 to 4) yielding a total score between 0 and 28.
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Fear and Avoidance Hierarchy
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Children's Depression Inventory
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
The Panic Attack Record
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Subjective Symptoms Scale
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Panic and Phobia Questionnaire
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Participant Global Impression of Improvement (PGI)
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Perceptions of Treatment Questionnaire: Adolescent and Parent Versions
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Children's Perception Scale (Locus of Control Scale)
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Stress Index for Parents of Adolescents
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Parenting Locus of Control Scale
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Therapy Attitude Inventory
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Family Assessment Measure (FAM)
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS)
Time frame: Measured at Months 3, 6, and 12 post-treatment
Plan to share: No
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This study is completed, as verified in Feb 2014. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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