Brief Videos Delivered by Text Messages as a Public Health Intervention for PTSD in Youth
NCT ID: NCT07165782
Last Updated: 2025-09-10
Study Results
The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.
Basic Information
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RECRUITING
NA
98 participants
INTERVENTIONAL
2025-09-10
2026-12-30
Brief Summary
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1. Does the intervention help youth reduce their symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, and depression, improve how well they function day-to-day, and lead to post-traumatic growth.
2. Will it be possible to conduct a larger study on the intervention (e.g., are we able to attract participants to take part in the study; do participants follow through with the intervention and the study) and is the intervention acceptable to youth (e.g., do they watch the videos, and rate the videos as useful, interesting, understandable, and relevant)?
Researchers will compare those who receive the intervention right away to those who wait to receive the intervention to see if there are differences between groups.
Videos will teach youth about PTSD and provide the opportunity to practice strategies that have been shown to help with reduce symptoms of PTSD, such as exposure, reducing avoidance, social support, and coping strategies (e.g., changing your thoughts, deep breathing, and muscle relaxation).
The study is fully online. Participants will be randomly placed in one of two groups:
1. Intervention Group: Gets three PTSD-related text messages per week for 10 weeks. They will also be asked to rate each of the videos on how helpful you found them.
2. Waitlist Group: Does not receive text messages until AFTER the final surveys for the study are completed (i.e., 5 months), then will receive the intervention.
Everyone will be asked to complete online surveys about their mental health and functioning 3 times during the study:
* Beginning of the study
* 10 weeks into the study
* 3 months after the videos end (end of study)
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Detailed Description
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Conditions
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Study Design
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RANDOMIZED
PARALLEL
TREATMENT
DOUBLE
Study Groups
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Brief Video Intervention
Participants will receive three text messages per week for 10 weeks. Each message contains a link to a video providing information about PTSD and coping strategies.
Brief Videos Delivered by Text Message
The intervention consists of brief videos delivered by text message, designed to deliver psychoeducation, coping strategies, and social support guidance for youth with PTSD. The focus is to reduce avoidance behaviors, increase exposure, change cognitions and enhance social support.
The text messages will follow a six-module curriculum, covering key PTSD recovery topics:
1. Psychoeducation on PTSD - Understanding symptoms, trauma responses, and brain plasticity.
2. Reducing Avoidance - Encouraging gradual engagement with feared thoughts and situations.
3. Cognitive Coping Strategies - Introducing cognitive restructuring techniques.
4. Behavioral Coping Strategies - Teaching relaxation techniques (e.g., deep breathing, grounding).
5. Social Support - Highlighting the role of social support and strategies to strengthen connections.
6. Maintenance and Relapse Prevention - Preparing for setbacks and reinforcing progress.
Control Group
The control group will receive no intervention. They will have access to the intervention after they complete all study activities, however they will not be included in the data analysis.
No interventions assigned to this group
Interventions
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Brief Videos Delivered by Text Message
The intervention consists of brief videos delivered by text message, designed to deliver psychoeducation, coping strategies, and social support guidance for youth with PTSD. The focus is to reduce avoidance behaviors, increase exposure, change cognitions and enhance social support.
The text messages will follow a six-module curriculum, covering key PTSD recovery topics:
1. Psychoeducation on PTSD - Understanding symptoms, trauma responses, and brain plasticity.
2. Reducing Avoidance - Encouraging gradual engagement with feared thoughts and situations.
3. Cognitive Coping Strategies - Introducing cognitive restructuring techniques.
4. Behavioral Coping Strategies - Teaching relaxation techniques (e.g., deep breathing, grounding).
5. Social Support - Highlighting the role of social support and strategies to strengthen connections.
6. Maintenance and Relapse Prevention - Preparing for setbacks and reinforcing progress.
Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria
* Direct exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence or through witnessing, learning it happened to a close relation as assessed by the Life Events Checklist
* Between 15 and 25 years old at time of enrolment
* Access to a mobile phone and a data plan that allows them to receive text messages and videos
* Live in Canada
Exclusion Criteria
* Active symptoms of psychosis, indicated by a brief Psychosis Screener Questionnaire
* An inability to read and/or understand English
15 Years
25 Years
ALL
No
Sponsors
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IWK Health Centre
OTHER
Responsible Party
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Patrick J. McGrath
Principal Investigator
Principal Investigators
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Patrick J McGrath, PhD
Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
IWK Health
Locations
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IWK Health
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Countries
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Central Contacts
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Facility Contacts
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Other Identifiers
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FDN148371
Identifier Type: OTHER_GRANT
Identifier Source: secondary_id
1031707
Identifier Type: -
Identifier Source: org_study_id
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