Sugar water injection may ease PTSD symptoms
NCT ID NCT04421573
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 15, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study tests whether injecting a dextrose (sugar water) solution around nerves in the neck can reduce PTSD symptoms like anxiety and brain fog. Twenty-four adults who have tried at least two medications and two non-drug treatments for PTSD will receive either the injection or delayed usual care. The goal is to see if the procedure is safe, satisfying, and improves quality of life.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- D5W (dextrose 5% in water) injection
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a new, non-drug option to ease PTSD symptoms like anxiety and brain fog.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small, early study with only 24 participants. The results may not apply to everyone, and the procedure's benefits are not yet proven.
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
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 24 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
-
Jul 2023
- Expected to finish
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Oct 2027
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 90 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Not involved in another study of PTSD treatment * Reliable transportation * Comfortable with computers * Tried 2 or more medications for treatment of PTSD symptoms * Tried 2 or more non-medication treatments for PTSD symptom * No known life-threatening illness * Not taking daily narcotics * Not having 3or more alcoholic drinks on an average day * No active suicidal plans * No major surgery plans * No major life stress that might interfere with completing study * Symptoms for more than 1 year * Not planning to move for next 18 months. * Living within an hour of Portlland, OR, Madison, WI, or Lexington, KY * Wiling to provide 2 email and 2 phone contact methods * Willing to answer questions on multiple occasions over the course of a year. * Willing to be assigned to 3 months of usual care treatment * No diagnosis of schizophrenia, Borderline Personality Disorder, or Bipolar Disorder. * No severe needle phobia * Chronic pain ≤ 5/10 * PCL-C score ≥ 50 Exclusion Criteria: None separate from inclusion criteria
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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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Danesh Mazloomdoost
Lexington, Kentucky, 40509, United States
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Eric Phillippi M.D. Clinic
Madison, Wisconsin, 53719, United States
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NW Regen
Tigard, Oregon, 97224, United States
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Paul W. Johnson, D.O., Clinic.
Portland, Oregon, 87213, United States
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