Internet-delivered Attention Training for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The goal of this study is to investigate an attention training program for participants with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. The attention training consists of a modified dot probe task with picture stimuli related to washing and checking paired with neutral pictures. Participants are randomly assigned to an experimental and a placebo-control group. After a minimum of 4 weeks of attention training we expect to find differences between participants of the experimental and the control group in terms of attention bias, OCD symptoms, anxiety and depression.

Official Title
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Internet-delivered Attention Training for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Conditions
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Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Attention Training Program


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: diagnosis of primary OCD according to OCI-R self report (cut-off >=18) Exclusion Criteria: suicidal substance abuse or addiction psychotic symptoms visual impairment if not compensated with optical aid Current treatment is not an exclusion criterion, but data on treatment status (current psycho- or pharmacotherapy for OCD) will enter our statistical analyses.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years
Maximum Age: 65 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Treatment
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Triple


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Placebo Comparator: Attention Training Placebo<br>Same procedure, stimulus material, frequency and duration as in experimental group. The only difference: In the placebo group the probe randomly appears at one of the two locations on the screen so as not to train attention in any direction. Thus, the placebo training sessions are identical to the bias assessment sessions. | |
| Experimental: Attention Training Program<br>The Attention Training consists of a modified dot-probe task. In this task pairs of pictures (OCD-relevant/neutral) are presented for 500 ms on a computer screen. Next, a probe appears on one of the two former picture locations. Participants have to react to that probe by pressing the corresponding button on the keyboard. One training session takes approximately 10 minutes in which 160 stimulus pairs are shown. In the experimental group the probe always appears at the location of the neutral picture so as to train attention away from OCD-relevant stimuli. Participants are asked to complete at least 2 training sessions per week over a period of 5 weeks. The first and last session are bias assessment sessions (see outcome measures), but participants stay blind to this. | Behavioral: Attention Training Program<br> <br> * Other names: Attentional Training;|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale Self-Report Scale (Y-BOCS-SRS) T1 | The Y-BOCS-SRS measures severity of OCD symptoms. | pre-treatment, estimated: between day 1 and day 7 after enrolment (no time limit set) | 
| Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale Self-Report Scale (Y-BOCS-SRS) T2 | The Y-BOCS-SRS measures severity of OCD symptoms. | post-treatment, between day 1 and 6 after T2 Bias Assessment (time limit set) | 
| Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale Self-Report Scale (Y-BOCS-SRS) T3 | The Y-BOCS-SRS measures severity of OCD symptoms. | follow-up, between day 27 and 50 after T2 questionnaires (time limit set) | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) T1 | The OCI-R measures severity of OCD symptoms. | pre-treatment, estimated: between day 1 and day 7 after enrolment (no time limit set) | 
| Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) T2 | The OCI-R measures severity of OCD symptoms. | post-treatment, between day 1 and 6 after T2 Bias Assessment (time limit set) | 
| Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) T3 | The OCI-R measures severity of OCD symptoms. | follow-up, between day 27 and 50 after T2 questionnaires (time limit set) | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Attention Training, Attention Bias Modification, Dot-Probe Task, Randomized Controlled Trial, Online Treatment, Washing, Checking