New ASL-Based therapy aims to tackle alcohol and trauma in deaf community
NCT ID NCT06278922
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests a therapy toolkit called Signs of Safety, designed for Deaf individuals who use American Sign Language and struggle with alcohol use disorder and PTSD. The toolkit adapts an existing therapy (Seeking Safety) to be Deaf-accessible. Researchers compare it to treatment as usual and a no-treatment control group in a nationwide virtual trial involving 144 participants.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Signs of Safety toolkit (behavioral therapy)
- What this could lead to
- If effective, this could provide a culturally and linguistically accessible treatment option for Deaf individuals with alcohol use disorder and PTSD, addressing a major health disparity.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small trial (144 participants) testing a behavioral intervention, so results may not generalize widely. The therapy may not outperform usual care or may have limited long-term benefits.
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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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 144 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Dec 2024
- Expected to finish
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Nov 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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18 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: * Self-identification as Deaf or hard-of-hearing * Proficiency in American Sign Language (ASL) * Age 18 years or older * Access to videoconferencing technology for informed consent and, if applicable, study therapy sessions * Access to online survey technology for study assessments * "Problematic alcohol consumption, drinking behaviors, and alcohol-related problems" on the AUD Identification Test (AUDIT), a 10-item screening measure developed by the World Health Organization that demonstrates good sensitivity and specificity in many populations (past-month referent time period; score ≥ 8 for men or ≥ 6 for women) * "Subthreshold or full PTSD," on the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5), a 20-item measure of PTSD symptoms reliably used to monitor symptom change (past-month referent time period; "subthreshold" = meets at least two DSM-5 diagnostic categories (B, C, D, and/or E) at moderate or high severity) Exclusion Criteria: * Participation in concurrent formal psychotherapy (Note: Participants in all study conditions will be asked to refrain from concurrent formal psychotherapy. Participants who engage in formal psychotherapy outside of the research will be removed from the study at the point of treatment initiation. Outside treatment engagement will be queried at each assessment timepoint. If endorsed, the participant will be removed from the study at that timepoint, but data collected prior to treatment initiation will remain in the dataset. Aligning with the Seeking Safety model, Alcoholics Anonymous/Narcotics Anonymous/Dual Recovery Anonymous attendance will be encouraged; attendance will be tracked as a potential outcome mediator.) * Members of the following special populations: Adults unable to consent; Individuals younger than 18 years; Prisoners; Pregnant women (Note: The investigators will not knowingly include pregnant women as participants; however, the investigators will not assess participants' pregnancy status.)
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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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University of Massachusetts Medical School
RECRUITINGWorcester, Massachusetts, 01655, United States
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