NCT01417026

Intranasal Oxytocin and Learning in Autism

Promoting Social Perceptual Learning With Oxytocin in Autism

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 36 (actual)
• Sponsor: Robert Schultz · Academic / Other
• Sex: Male
• Age: 12 Years – 17 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The main objective of this study is to determine the safety and therapeutic potential of intranasal oxytocin in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) when paired with a computer game intervention that is designed to enhance face perception skills.

Detailed description

Recognizing faces is critical to social functioning, and can be improved for individuals with ASD by using intervention software in the form of appropriately designed computer games. The effects of this type of social intervention may be amplified with the concurrent use of oxytocin. Furthermore, these learning effects may impact social skills in general and translate to the level of the individual's everyday social behavior. Thus, the objective of this study is to determine the safety and therapeutic potential of intranasal oxytocin in children and adolescents with ASD when paired with a computer game intervention that is designed to enhance face perception skills.

Conditions

• Autism Spectrum Disorders

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	Intranasal Oxytocin (Trade name: Syntocinon)	This is a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of intranasal oxytocin in children and adolescents with ASD. Subjects will be randomized to 24 IU intranasal oxytocin or placebo for a 5 day period with concomitant game play of computer games, which are designed to enhance face perception skills. Measures of social function and cognition will be administered before and after the intervention period.

Timeline

• Start date: 2011-09-01
• Primary completion: 2015-04-01
• Completion: 2015-04-01
• First posted: 2011-08-16
• Last updated: 2017-03-30
• Results posted: 2017-03-30

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States