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WithdrawnNCT03432065Updated Sep 26, 2024

A Pilot Study of Buspirone for the Treatment of Anxiety in Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders

A Phase 2 interventional study of Buspirone in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Anxiety, sponsored by Massachusetts General Hospital. Withdrawn. Open to participants aged 6 Years to 17 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-09-26.

Sponsored by Massachusetts General Hospital · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Why this study was withdrawn
This study was withdrawn due to competing research interests and slow recruitment.
Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
0
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
6 Years to 17 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The main objective of this exploratory 8-week pilot study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of buspirone for the treatment of anxiety in youth (ages 6-17 years) with autism spectrum disorders. The study results will be used to generate hypotheses for a larger randomized-controlled trial with explicit hypotheses and sufficient statistical power.

02

Conditions studied

  • Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Anxiety

Keywords

  • Autism Spectrum Disorders
  • Anxiety
  • Pervasive Developmental Disorders
  • Buspar
  • Buspirone
03

In context

Autism Spectrum Disorder

1,724 studies on the registry are indexed under Autism Spectrum Disorder; 500 are open to participants now.

Browse Autism Spectrum Disorder studies →

Lead sponsor

Massachusetts General Hospital is the lead sponsor of 2,586 studies on the registry; 447 are open to participants now.

Of its 222 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 168 (76%) have results posted.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
6 Years to 17 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

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.

Inclusion criteria

  • Male or female participants between 6 and 17 years of age
  • ASD diagnostic criteria as established by clinical diagnostic interview
  • Participants with a score of ≥60 or more on the Anxiety/Depression subscale of CBCL
  • Subjects can be taking psychotropic medications if they have been on the medication for at least 4 weeks prior to initiating study treatment and if they are on a stable dose, provided the medication is not listed in the Concomitant Medications section of the protocol.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • History of active seizure disorder (EEG suggestive of seizure activity and/or history of seizure in last 1 month)
  • Subjects with a medical condition or treatment that will either jeopardize subject safety or affect the scientific merit of the study, including:
  • Pregnant or nursing females
  • Organic brain disorders
  • Uncorrected hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism
  • abnormalities on (e.g., , arrhythmia)
  • History of renal or hepatic impairment.
  • Clinically unstable psychiatric conditions or judged to be at serious suicidal risk
  • Current diagnosis of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder
  • History of substance use (except nicotine or caffeine) within past 3 months or urine drug screen positive for substances of abuse
  • Current treatment with medication with primary central nervous system activity (as specified in the Concomitant Medication section of the protocol)
  • A non-responder or history of intolerance to buspirone, after treatment at an adequate dose and duration as determined by the clinician
  • Subjects currently taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI) and/or inducers or inhibitors including nefazodone, diltiazem, verapamil, erythromaycin, itraconazole, or rifampin.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(5)

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.

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.

Clinically significant

Judged by the study doctor to matter for your health or for the study. It is a doctor’s decision, so ask the study team if you are unsure whether something counts.

ECG (electrocardiogram)

A recording of the heart’s electrical activity, taken with stickers on the chest, arms and legs. It takes a few minutes and does not hurt.

QT and QTc

On an ECG, the QT interval is the time the heart’s lower chambers take to activate electrically and recover in each beat. QTc is that time adjusted for heart rate (QTcF by Fridericia’s formula, QTcB by Bazett’s). Some medicines lengthen it, and a long QTc can raise the risk of a dangerous heart rhythm.

The study may name a correction formula and a limit in milliseconds, often around 450–480.

CYP3A (CYP3A4) inhibitors and inducers

CYP3A is a group of enzymes, mainly CYP3A4, in the liver and gut that break down many medicines. Some medicines, supplements and foods (grapefruit, St John’s wort) slow them down or speed them up, which changes how much of a study drug stays in the body.

Studies list them so they can be avoided or switched; bring a list of everything you take, including supplements.

05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
0 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Buspirone

    Buspirone tablets will be administered twice daily, and will be titrated to a maximum daily dose of 60mg for 8 weeks.

    Drug: Buspirone

Interventions

  • Children with autism spectrum disorders will receive buspirone treatment for eight weeks. Buspirone will be titrated to the maximum daily dose during the first four weeks of the trial (dose titration phase). Week 4 onwards, subjects will be maintained on maximum achieved dose until the end of the trial. During the titration phase, total dose will be increased by 10mg at each visit and by 5mg on the 4th day after each visit.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Reduction in Child and Adolescent Symptom Inventory-5-Anxiety (CASI-Anx) Score

    The primary outcome measure of efficacy will be assessed by the reduction in anxiety symptom severity as measured by a change from baseline on the Child and Adolescent Symptom Inventory-5-Anxiety (CASI-Anx) scores. Responders are defined as those who demonstrate a \>30% reduction on the CASI-Anx.

    Time frame: Baseline to 8 Weeks

07

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

08

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Sep 26, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03432065
Responsible party
Tolga A Ceranoglu (Medical doctor, Massachusetts General Hospital) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 13, 2018
Start date
Dec 2024 (estimated)
Primary completion
Aug 2025 (estimated)
Completion
Aug 2025 (estimated)
Last update
Sep 26, 2024

Study contacts

Atilla Ceranoglu, MD
principal investigator · Massachusetts General Hospital

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is withdrawn, as verified in Sep 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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