Could a simple pill stop depression after a broken bone?
NCT ID NCT05851898
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study looks at whether giving the antidepressant duloxetine to adults aged 65 and older right after a broken leg can prevent depression. One hundred participants will take duloxetine daily for a year and be screened monthly for depressive symptoms. The main goal is to see if this approach is practical and acceptable, not yet to prove it works.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Duloxetine (an antidepressant)
- What this could lead to
- If this works, it could point toward a way to prevent depression in older adults after a serious injury like a broken leg.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small pilot study, so results may not apply to everyone. It only tests feasibility, not whether duloxetine truly prevents depression. Side effects of duloxetine are possible.
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 4
Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.
- Participants
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About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Apr 2024
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2028
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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65 years and older
- 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: * Geriatric (greater than or equal to 65 years old) * Lower extremity fragility fractures managed operatively Exclusion Criteria: * Polytrauma * Pathological fractures * Patients on hospice * Patients with previously diagnosed psychiatric disorders * Patients with previously diagnosed dementia * Patients already taking Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI)s and Serotonin- norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI)s * Patients already taking mood stabilizing medication * Unable to provide informed consent (no use of a legal authorized representative) * Patients with pre-existing life limiting diagnoses (cancer, etc.)
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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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Wake Forest University Health Sciences
RECRUITINGWinston-Salem, North Carolina, 27157, United States
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