Can a single day of brain stimulation plus a drug ease PTSD?
NCT ID NCT07777380
First seen Aug 20, 2026 · Last updated Aug 21, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This phase 2 trial is testing whether a one-day treatment combining repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) with the drug D-cycloserine can help military personnel and veterans with PTSD. The study will enroll 50 participants who will receive either the active treatment or a placebo, to see if the approach is feasible and tolerable. The goal is to explore a faster way to reduce PTSD symptoms, potentially offering relief in a single day instead of weeks or months of therapy.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- A combination of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and the drug D-cycloserine (DCS), given as a one-day treatment.
- What this could lead to
- If this works, it could offer a rapid, one-day treatment option for PTSD in military personnel and veterans, potentially easing symptoms much faster than current therapies.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-phase trial with only 50 participants, so results may not apply broadly. The treatment's safety and effectiveness are not yet proven, and there may be side effects from the brain stimulation or the drug.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 50 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Nov 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jan 2029
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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19 to 60 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * are outpatients between the ages of 19-60; * are voluntary and competent to consent; * are military personnel or veterans; * have DSM-5 diagnosis of PTSD with a CAPS for DSM-5 (CAPS-5) score ≥ 25; * 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score ≤ 23; * have had no increase or initiation of any psychotropic medication in the 4 weeks prior to screening; * if participating in psychotherapy, must have been in stable treatment for at least 1 month prior to entry into the study, with no anticipation of change in the frequency of therapeutic sessions, or the therapeutic focus over the duration of the study; * able to adhere to the treatment schedule; * Pass the TMS adult safety screening (TASS) questionnaire, and the MRI safety screening. Exclusion Criteria: * have a Severe Substance Use Disorder (except tobacco) within the last three (3) months; * have a concomitant major unstable medical illness, cardiac pacemaker or implanted medication pump; * have active suicidal intent; * are pregnant; * have a lifetime MINI diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, schizophreniform disorder, delusional disorder, or current psychotic symptoms; * have a MINI diagnosis of OCD, or mood disorder that is assessed by a study investigator to be primary and causing greater impairment than PTSD; * have a diagnosis of any personality disorder, assessed by a study investigator to be primary and causing greater impairment than MDD; * have failed a course of ECT in the current episode or previous episode; * have received rTMS for any previous indication; * have any significant neurological disorder, history of seizure disorder (except those therapeutically induced by ECT), or any significant head trauma with clear radiological evidence of cerebrovascular injury on imaging; * have an intracranial implant (e.g., aneurysm clips, shunts, stimulators, cochlear implants, or electrodes) or any other metal object within or near the head, excluding the mouth, that cannot be safely removed; * clinically significant laboratory abnormality, in the opinion of the one of the principal investigators or study physicians (including but not limited to abnormal blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR)); * currently take more than lorazepam 2 mg daily (or equivalent) or any dose of an anticonvulsant due to the potential to limit rTMS efficacy; * currently take dicumarol, gingko biloba, isoniazid, ethionamide, fluphenazine, metrizamide, tramadol, warfarin due to potential interactions with D-Cycloserine; * planned vaccination with Bacille Calmette-Guérin, cholera or typhoid or planned imaging procedure with an injectable die, within one week following the treatment days, due to potential interactions with DCS. * allergy to DCS
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Non-Invasive Neurostimulation Therapies Centre, University of British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 2A1, Canada
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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