Treatment of Suicidal Women With Borderline Personality Disorder
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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00183651 |
Recruitment Status :
Completed
First Posted : September 16, 2005
Last Update Posted : February 2, 2012
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Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
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Borderline Personality Disorder Suicide | Behavioral: Standard dialectical behavior therapy (SDBT) Behavioral: Individual DBT with no DBT group sessions (DBT-I) Behavioral: Group Skills DBT with no DBT individual sessions (DBT-S) | Phase 2 |
People with borderline personality disorder have limited behavioral skills and react abnormally to emotional stimulation. Standard dialectical behavior therapy (SDBT) has been shown to be an effective treatment for borderline personality disorder. This treatment combines weekly group sessions, at which patients learn new ways of dealing with their emotions, with weekly individual sessions with a therapist to discuss their emotions. The study compares SDBT to both individual DBT with no skills training and DBT skills training with no individual therapy. The study will determine whether efficacy of standard DBT is reduced when either DBT skills training or individual DBT therapy is removed.
Participants are randomly assigned to receive 1 year of SDBT, DBT with group sessions but no individual sessions, and DBT with individual sessions with no group sessions. Participants are monitored for 1 year after completing their assigned therapy. Throughout the 1-year study and during the 1-year follow-up period, self-report scales and questionnaires are used to assess participants every 4 months. These scales and questionnaires measure participants' suicidal thoughts and attempts, treatment compliance, emotional coping skills, social functioning, and overall well-being.
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Actual Enrollment : | 99 participants |
Allocation: | Randomized |
Intervention Model: | Parallel Assignment |
Masking: | Single (Outcomes Assessor) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | Assessment and Treatment of Parasuicidal Patients |
Study Start Date : | April 2004 |
Actual Primary Completion Date : | September 2008 |
Actual Study Completion Date : | June 2010 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
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Experimental: S-DBT
Participants receive standard dialectical behavior therapy
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Behavioral: Standard dialectical behavior therapy (SDBT)
Standard DBT includes: 1) individual DBT therapy (1 hour per week), 2) DBT group skills training (2.5 hours per week), 3) telephone consultation (as needed), and 4) therapist consultation team (1 hour per week).
Other Name: DBT, SDBT |
Active Comparator: DBT-I
Participants receive individual dialectical behavior therapy plus activities group
|
Behavioral: Individual DBT with no DBT group sessions (DBT-I)
Individual DBT (DBT-I) is 1 hour per week of individual therapy and 2.5 hours per week with the psychosocial activities group.
Other Name: DBT, DBT-I |
Active Comparator: DBT-S
Participants receive dialectical behavior therapy group skills plus case management
|
Behavioral: Group Skills DBT with no DBT individual sessions (DBT-S)
DBT group skills training is 2.5 hours per week and includes individual case management.
Other Name: DBT, DBT-S |
- Suicidal thoughts or attempts [ Time Frame: Measured at Year 2 ]
- Coping skills [ Time Frame: Measured at Year 2 ]

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 18 Years to 60 Years (Adult) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | Female |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | No |
Inclusion Criteria:
- Diagnosis of BPD
- At least one suicide attempt in the year prior to study entry AND at least one intentional self-injury within the 8 weeks prior to study entry
- Willing and able to comply with all study requirements
Exclusion Criteria:
- IQ less than 70
- Life-threatening anorexia
- Street homelessness with no contact information
- Admittance to a hospital with no expectation of discharge within 3 weeks prior to study entry OR sentenced to a jail or prison term that will last for more than 3 weeks
- Ordered by the court to receive psychological treatment
- Meet DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or seizure disorder
- Medical conditions other than BPD that may interfere with the study

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT00183651
United States, Washington | |
University of Washington, Department of Psychology, Behavior Research and Therapy Clinics | |
Seattle, Washington, United States, 98195-1525 |
Principal Investigator: | Marsha M. Linehan, PhD | Department of Psychology, University of Washington |
Publications:
Publications automatically indexed to this study by ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier (NCT Number):
Responsible Party: | Marsha Linehan, Professor, University of Washington |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT00183651 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
R01MH034486 ( U.S. NIH Grant/Contract ) R01MH034486 ( U.S. NIH Grant/Contract ) |
First Posted: | September 16, 2005 Key Record Dates |
Last Update Posted: | February 2, 2012 |
Last Verified: | January 2012 |
Suicide Women Emotions Psychotherapy, Group |
Suicide Personality Disorders Borderline Personality Disorder |
Self-Injurious Behavior Behavioral Symptoms Mental Disorders |