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The Influence of Oxytocin on the Processing of Social Contact
Plain-language guide to NCT01939639: phase 1 randomized trial of Oxytocin, 40 participants. Who took part, design and what was measured.
Key Facts
- Registry ID
- NCT01939639
- Phase
- phase 1
- Status
- completed
- Start
- 2013-03
- Completion (planned or actual)
- 2013-06
- Participants
- 40 (actual)
- Design
- randomized, double-blind, basic_science
- Conditions studied
- Healthy Male Volunteers
- Results posted
- not yet
What This Study Did, in Plain Language
What Was Tested
In this phase 1 trial, researchers set out to test Oxytocin.
Social touch can convey the most potent and salient of socio-emotional signals.
While the hypothalamic peptide oxytocin (OXT) has been identified as a key neurochemical mediator of grooming in some other social species, its modulatory influence on human interpersonal touch is unknown.
It had two arms (groups): Oxytocin (experimental) and Placebo (placebo comparator).
The registry classes the interventions as drug.
Who Took Part
The registry lists 40 actual participants took part.
It was open to men only aged from 18 years up to 60 years.
Healthy volunteers could join, not only people with the condition.
How the Study Was Run
It was run as a randomized, crossover and double-blind study.
Because people in this Oxytocin study were split into groups at random, differences between the groups are less likely to reflect who happened to join each one.
Each person switched between Oxytocin and the comparison at some point, usually with a gap in between.
Neither the participants nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Oxytocin, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.
Those kept unaware of assignments: participant and investigator.
It started in 2013-03 with completion listed for 2013-06.
It ran at 1 site in Germany.
Its stated primary purpose is basic science.
What Was Measured
Primary outcome: Pleasantness ratings of social touch (time frame: 30 minutes after the nasal spray administration). Blood-oxygen-level dependent signal in response to social touch (time frame: 30 minutes after the nasal spray administration).
It also tracked 1 secondary outcome, for example Questionnaire measurement of mood (PANAS) and anxiety (STAI).
What This Means in Plain Language
Put simply, this is a phase 1, randomized trial of Oxytocin in 40 people.
The trial is marked completed; no results are posted to the registry yet, so nothing here describes outcomes.
More context: the Oxytocin compound page, all human trials.
Our Notes on the Compound
Oxytocin: A peptide hormone with established obstetric medical uses and a less settled role in research on behavior, sexual function and appetite.
Related Pages
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov record. This explanation is written by PeptideWhiz from the public record. For research and education only. Not medical advice; no dosing information is given.