Development of Limited Contact CBT Treatment for IBS

NCT ID: NCT00248586

Last Updated: 2017-10-13

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 75 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2005-02-28
• Study Completion Date: 2006-07-31

Brief Summary

An accumulating body of evidence indicates that a specific psychological treatment called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is associated with significant reductions in pain and bowel dysfunction of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Despite its apparent efficacy, the clinical effectiveness of CBT (i.e., its generalizability, feasibility, cost effectiveness) has not been adequately established due partly to its duration, cost, and limited accessibility. As the "second generation" of IBS treatments undergo development and validation, it has become increasingly clear that efficacy demonstration is a necessary but not sufficient condition of treatment viability. One potential solution to the problem of clinical effectiveness is to develop a briefer, largely self administered version of CBT that retains the efficacy of standard CBT but is more transportable, accessible, and less costly to deliver. To this end, a two-stage project is proposed. The goals of the first stage will be to develop, refine, and pilot test an innovative limited therapist contact-CBT protocol patterned after treatments proven effective for painful medical disorders with similar pathophysiology as IBS. The primary aim of the second stage is to conduct a small randomized clinical trial (N = 75 patients meeting Rome II diagnostic criteria) of standard (10 session) version of CBT (S-CBT) and limited contact (4 session) version of CBT (LC-CBT) with reference to a wait list control to examine their comparative efficacy on multiple indices, including IBS symptoms (primary outcome variable), psychological distress, and quality of life. Secondary aims are (1) to identify patient characteristics that predict outcome; (2) obtain information regarding active change-inducing mechanisms that may underlie treatment outcome; and (3) obtain information regarding possible monetary benefits, cost-effectiveness, and cost-benefit of S-CBT versus LC-CBT protocols. Data from this trial would set the stage for an R01 funded multicenter study with a large, random, and representative sample that could establish the clinical effectiveness of LC-CBT and in so doing make a significant contribution toward more efficient and effective care of IBS.

Detailed Description

An accumulating body of evidence indicates that a specific psychological treatment called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is associated with significant reductions in pain and bowel dysfunction of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Despite its apparent efficacy, the clinical effectiveness of CBT (i.e., its generalizability, feasibility, cost effectiveness) has not been adequately established due partly to its duration, cost, and limited accessibility. As the "second generation" of IBS treatments undergo development and validation, it has become increasingly clear that efficacy demonstration is a necessary but not sufficient condition of treatment viability. One potential solution to the problem of clinical effectiveness is to develop a briefer, largely self administered version of CBT that retains the efficacy of standard CBT but is more transportable, accessible, and less costly to deliver. To this end, a two-stage project is proposed. The goals of the first stage will be to develop, refine, and pilot test an innovative limited therapist contact-CBT protocol patterned after treatments proven effective for painful medical disorders with similar pathophysiology as IBS. The primary aim of the second stage is to conduct a small randomized clinical trial (N = 75 patients meeting Rome II diagnostic criteria) of standard (10 session) version of CBT (S-CBT) and limited contact (4 session) version of CBT (LC-CBT) with reference to a wait list control to examine their comparative efficacy on multiple indices, including IBS symptoms (primary outcome variable), psychological distress, and quality of life. Secondary aims are (1) to identify patient characteristics that predict outcome; (2) obtain information regarding active change-inducing mechanisms that may underlie treatment outcome; and (3) obtain information regarding possible monetary benefits, cost-effectiveness, and cost-benefit of S-CBT versus LC-CBT protocols. Data from this trial would set the stage for an R01 funded multicenter study with a large, random, and representative sample that could establish the clinical effectiveness of LC-CBT and in so doing make a significant contribution toward more efficient and effective care of IBS.

Conditions

IBS

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Standard CBT (S-CBT)

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Standard CBT (S-CBT)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Standard CBT (S-CBT) is a skills-based training program delivered to patients in 10 weekly, 1-hour sessions.

Minimal contact CBT (MC-CBT)

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Minimal contact CBT (MC-CBT)

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Minimal contact CBT (MC-CBT) covers the same range of procedures featured in S-CBT but relies extensively on self study materials.

Control

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Standard CBT (S-CBT)

Standard CBT (S-CBT) is a skills-based training program delivered to patients in 10 weekly, 1-hour sessions.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Minimal contact CBT (MC-CBT)

Minimal contact CBT (MC-CBT) covers the same range of procedures featured in S-CBT but relies extensively on self study materials.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Inclusion criteria. To be included in the investigation, patients will have to: (a) be between the ages of 18 and 70 years of age; (b) meet Rome II criteria (66) for irritable bowel syndrome whose symptoms occur at least 2 days per week for 6 months or greater; (c) have a minimum 6th grade reading level based on the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT); (d) be willing to sign a consent form stating their willingness to participate in and participate in all phases of the investigation; (e) take either no IBS medications, or if taking medications, be on a stable dose for at least three months prior to trial entry with an understanding that dosage be maintained at pretreatment level(s) unless change is medically necessary.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Exclusion criteria. Patients will be excluded from the study if they (a) are undergoing concurrent psychological therapy and are unwilling or unable to stop treatment for the duration of the study; (b) have a history of having previously received actual CBT treatments being evaluated in the study, (c) have a diagnosed organic GI disorder or show current suicidality, substance abuse, psychosis in which case they will be referred for appropriate treatment; (e) are intellectually unable or unwilling to complete daily GI ratings

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 70 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)

NIH

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Jeffrey Lackner, PsyD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

UB, SUNY

Locations

UB, SUNY School of Medicine

Buffalo, New York, United States

Countries

United States

References

Lackner JM, Jaccard J, Krasner SS, Katz LA, Gudleski GD, Holroyd K. Self-administered cognitive behavior therapy for moderate to severe irritable bowel syndrome: clinical efficacy, tolerability, feasibility. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2008 Aug;6(8):899-906. doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2008.03.004. Epub 2008 Jun 4.

Reference Type: RESULT

PMID: 18524691 (View on PubMed)

Lackner JM, Gudleski GD, Keefer L, Krasner SS, Powell C, Katz LA. Rapid response to cognitive behavior therapy predicts treatment outcome in patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2010 May;8(5):426-32. doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2010.02.007. Epub 2010 Feb 17.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 20170751 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

R03DK067878

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

R03 DK67878 (completed 2007)

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id