Early Study of N-Acetylcysteine to Treat Deliberate Self-Harm in Adolescents
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2015-05-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Deliberate Self-Harm (DSH) among adolescents is a serious behavioral problem associated with
significant injury, impaired functioning, reduced quality of life, and high rates of
psychiatric hospitalizations. While DSH has not been shown to have a direct link to suicide
attempts themselves, there is a clear link between individuals who engage in DSH and overall
rates of suicide. There is currently no medication treatment approved by the FDA for the
treatment of DSH.
The goal of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the dietary supplement
N-Acetylcysteine in adolescents aged 13-21 with deliberate self-harm behaviors. There will be
an additional neuroimaging component to expand knowledge regarding the neural correlates of
this treatment in the study population. We hypothesize that N-Acetylcysteine will reduce the
severity of deliberate self harm behaviors because this supplement has been helpful in
treating disorders that share some similar traits with DSH. We will be using this medication
in 40 young people who deliberately harm themselves and we will assess the severity of their
behaviors while being treated with this dietary supplement. We also will collect neuroimaging
data on the study participants at baseline and after the treatment with N-Acetylcysteine and
compare it to 40 age-matched healthy peer neuroimaging data. The purpose of including this
healthy group is to expand knowledge about neural correlates of the study population prior to
treatment.
Phase:
Phase 1
Details
Lead Sponsor:
University of Minnesota University of Minnesota - Clinical and Translational Science Institute