The Effects of Propranolol, Hydrocortisone, and Morphine on Military-Relevant Performance Outcomes
Status:
RECRUITING
Trial end date:
2026-09-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
This clinical trial aims to evaluate the nature and duration of effects of three FDA-approved medications (propranolol, hydrocortisone, and morphine) on military-relevant cognitive, emotional, and motor performance following an exposure to a stressful situation (i.e., exposure to a tarantula) in physically healthy adult volunteers (aged 18 - 40) with fear of spiders to help the future development of medications for treating Acute Stress Reactions.
The main questions this study aims to answer are:
Will placebo treatment (oral placebo) result in significant decrements in Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) performance compared to propranolol treatment?
Will placebo treatment \[intramuscular (IM) placebo\] result in significant decrements in PVT performance compared to hydrocortisone treatment?
Will placebo treatment (IM placebo) result in significant decrements in PVT performance compared to morphine treatment?
Participants will receive one of five study medications (oral propranolol, oral placebo, IM hydrocortisone, IM morphine, or IM morphine) after a brief exposure to a tarantula. Participants will complete cognitive and simple motor tasks and psychological assessments before and after the study medication administration.