Can eye movement therapy tame borderline personality disorder?
NCT ID NCT06493708
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests whether Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), a therapy proven for PTSD, can help people with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Researchers will give 56 adults 14 weekly EMDR sessions and measure changes in emotional and behavioral symptoms. The goal is to see if EMDR can improve emotional regulation and reduce the core difficulties of BPD in a real-world clinic setting.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a short-term therapy to improve emotional regulation and reduce core symptoms in people with borderline personality disorder.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with only 56 participants and no control group, so results may not be generalizable. EMDR may not be effective for BPD symptoms beyond trauma.
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 56 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2024
- Expected to finish
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Oct 2026
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 to 65 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: * Patients must be over 18 years old * A current diagnosis of PBD according to the DSM-5 was confirmed using the SCID-5-CV and SCID-5-PD diagnostic scale Exclusion Criteria: * Suicidal ideation in the last 3 months (suicidal thoughts active intentionally but without specific planning or suicidal thoughts active with planning and intentionality) * Intellectual disability * Any active disturbance from use of substances or alcohol * Any other diagnosis of Axis I, except for Depressive Disorders, Anxious Spectrum Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.
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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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ASST Spedali Civili Brescia
RECRUITINGBrescia, Brescia, 25123, Italy
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