Prolonged exposure therapy for PTSD among spinal cord injury survivors: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

• Main Authors: Mark B. Powers, Jamie R. Pogue, Nicholas E. Curcio, Sarita Patel, Andrea Wierzchowski, Estrella V. Thomas, Ann Marie Warren, Maris Adams, Emma Turner, Emily Carl, Katherine Froehlich-Grobe, Seema Sikka, Michael Foreman, Kiara Leonard, Megan Douglas, Monica Bennett, Simon Driver
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021-06-01
• Series: Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications
• Subjects: Spinal cord injury; PTSD; Prolonged exposure therapy; Randomized controlled trial
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451865421000648

The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center estimates 294,000 people in the US live with a spinal cord injury (SCI), with approximately 17,810 new cases each year. Although the physical outcomes associated with SCI have been widely studied, the psychological consequences of sustaining a SCI remain largely unexplored. Scant research has focused on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in this population, despite prevalence estimates suggesting that up to 60% of individuals with SCI experience PTSD post-injury, compared to only 7% of the general US population. Fortunately, prolonged exposure therapy (PE) is a well-researched and highly effective treatment for PTSD. However, no trauma focused exposure-based therapy for PTSD (e.g. PE) has not yet been tested in a SCI population. Thus, we aim to conduct the first test of an evidence-based intervention for PTSD among patients with SCI. Adults with SCI and PTSD (N = 60) will be randomly assigned to either: (1) 12-sessions of PE (2–3 sessions per week) or (2) a treatment as usual (TAU) control group who will receive the standard inpatient rehabilitation care for SCI patients. Primary outcomes will be assessed at 0, 6, 10, and 32 weeks.