Effectiveness of a Brief Intensive Trauma Treatment for Adolescents With (s)PTSD: a Multi-center RCT

Effectiveness of a Brief Intensive Trauma Treatment for Adolescents With (Subclinical) PTSD: a Multi-center Randomized Controlled Trial

The primary objective of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a Brief Intensive Trauma Treatment (BITT) for adolescents with (s)PTSD.

This study is a multi-center, single-blinded RCT. Adolescents (12-18 years old) with (s)PTSD will be randomly allocated by an independent researcher to the BITT (n=50) versus a waitlist control group (WLCG; n=50), stratified by center. Measurements are done at comparable time intervals for both groups: at pre-treatment (T0), directly after BITT or WLCG (T1) and at 3 (T2), 6 (T3) and 9 (T4) months follow-up. The WLCG receives BITT after the 3 months follow-up.

Inclusion Criteria:

In order to be eligible to participate in this study, a subject must meet all of the following criteria:

• 12-18 years of age;

• with a history of psychological trauma (conform the Life Events Checklist of the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for Children and Adolescents DSM-5 (CAPS-CA DSM-5) (Nader, 2004; van Meijel et al., 2019);

• at least subthreshold PTSD criteria, conform the CAPS-CA DSM-5, i.e.;

  • fully meeting criterion A, F and G and at least one symptom of criteria B, C, D and E;
  • or fully meeting criterion A, F, G and at least the B, C, D or E symptom clusters;

• and written informed consent must be provided by the adolescent and, for adolescents aged 12-15 years, all legal guardians.

Exclusion Criteria:

A potential subject who meets any of the following criteria will be excluded from participation in this study in case of:

• inability to speak and write Dutch;
• estimated or determined mental retardation (IQ <70);
• suffering from ongoing trauma by a parent who is part of the adolescent's current primary-care system.