Home › Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder › NCT02560805
Role of Sympathetic Overactivity and Angiotensin II in PTSD and CV
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Cardiovascular Disease Risk: Role of Sympathetic Overactivity and Angiotensin II
Who can join
Ages 18 to 65 · All sexes · Healthy volunteers welcome
Full eligibility criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * veterans ages 18-65 years old with PTSD and without PTSD (controls) matched for age, gender, and race. Exclusion Criteria: * pregnancy * hypertension * diabetes * heart or vascular disease * illicit drug use * excessive alcohol use (\>2 drinks per day) * hyperlipidemia * autonomic dysfunction * current treatment with clonidine, beta blockers, angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) * treatment with monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors within the last 14 days * any serious systemic disease * chronic kidney disease defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) \< 60 cc/min * hyperkalemia (serum potassium \> 5 meq/dL) * systolic blood pressure \< 100 mm Hg * diastolic blood pressure \< 60 mm Hg * heart rate \< 50 beats/min * known hypersensitivity to ARBs or beta blockers
About the study
The purpose of this study is to find out why patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have an increased risk for heart disease and high blood pressure later in life. A second purpose is to find out what causes PTSD patients to have high adrenaline levels during stress. This study will also test if a medicine called losartan improves high adrenaline levels in patients with PTSD and if a certain gene that has to do with high blood pressure might be associated with high adrenaline levels.
What is being tested
- Microneurography (procedure)
- Combat virtual reality video clip (behavioral)
- Handgrip Exercise (procedure)
- Cold Pressor Test (CPT) (procedure)
- Sodium Nitroprusside (SNP) (drug)
- Phenylephrine (drug)
Sponsor: Emory University · Participants: 134 · Started: 2015-10
Contact the study team
- Deirdre Dixon · Phone: 404-321-6111
- Dana DaCosta · Phone: 404-727-7762
Official record on ClinicalTrials.gov — NCT02560805
Locations in the U.S.
| Georgia | Atlanta VA Medical Center, Decatur |
Conditions
From ClinicalTrials.gov, data retrieved Sep 30, 2026. Each study sets its own eligibility; the study team decides who can join.