Anxiety Disorders

Child and Adolescent Anxiety Multimodal Study

Principal Investigator: John T. Walkup, M.D.

This 6-year, multi-site randomized controlled trial is sponsored by the NIMH. The purpose of this study is to further our knowledge of the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders, specifically separation anxiety disorder, social phobia, and generalized anxiety disorder. This research compares the relative efficacy of sertraline, cognitive-behavioral-therapy (CBT), combination of sertraline and CBT, and pill placebo in reducing symptoms of anxiety and associated impairment in youth ages 7-17.

A total of 488 participants will be enrolled in the study, and approximately 100 of these will be at Johns Hopkins. The study design consists of two phases: a 12-week treatment phase, and a 6-month maintenance phase. Participants are assessed by independent evaluator at the end of treatment and 3 months and 6 months following treatment. Successful treatment of childhood anxiety disorders holds the hope of decreasing acute distress, and also altering the life trajectory of affected individuals. This comparative treatment trial should aid in answering the important question “which treatment works best for whom?”

Family-Based Prevention for Childhood Anxiety

Principal Investigator: Golda S. Ginsburg, Ph.D

Current Status: Recruiting

VOLUNTEERS being recruited for this study. Click here if you are interested.

This 5-year study, funded by NIMH, evaluates the effectiveness of a brief, family-based program for preventing anxiety disorders in the offspring of anxious parents. Eligible participants include parents who have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder and their 7- to12-year-old children. A total of 100 families will be randomly assigned to receive an 8-week family-based prevention program immediately or after 1 year. All participants are closely monitored.

Publications:

Ginsburg, G. S. (in press). The Child Anxiety Prevention Study (CAPS): Intervention model and primary outcomes. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

Baltimore City Anxiety Treatment Study in the Schools (BCATSS)

Principal Investigator: Golda S. Ginsburg, Ph.D

Current Status: Recruiting

VOLUNTEERS being recruited for this study. Click here if you are interested.

This 3-year study, funded by the NIMH, examines the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral-therapy (CBT), when conducted in schools by school-based counselors for treating childhood anxiety disorders. Eligible children must have one of the following disorders: separation anxiety, social phobia, generalized anxiety, or specific phobia. The study compares the relative effectiveness of school-based CBT to usual care among 30 children in Baltimore city elementary and middle schools.

Publications:

Ginsburg, G.S. & Drake, K.L (2002).  School-based CBT for Anxious African-American Adolescents: A controlled Pilot Study. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41, 768-775.

Ginsburg, G., Becker, K. D., Kingery, J., & Nichols, T. (2008). Transporting CBT for childhood anxiety disorders into inner city school-based mental health clinics. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 15, 148-158.

Investigation of Neural Differences in Emotional Attention in
Children with and without Pediatric Anxiety Disorders

Principal Investigator: Roma A. Vasa, M.D.

This NIMH sponsored study uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine brain differences underlying emotional attention in children with and without anxiety disorders. Boys and girls, ages 8 to 12 years, with one or more of the following disorders are eligible to participate: separation anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia.  Results of this study may be useful for understanding what causes anxiety in children and may help to develop more focused assessment and treatment methods.

VOLUNTEERS being recruited for this study - Click here if you are interested.

Publications:

Vasa, R. A., Grados, M., Slomine, B., Herskovitz, E. H., Thompson, R. E., Salorio, C., Christensen. J., Wurtsa, C., Riddle, M. A., Gerring, J. P. (2004). Neuroimaging correlates of anxiety after pediatric traumatic brain injury. Biological Psychiatry, 55(3), 208-216.

Vasa, R. A., Roberson-Nay, R., Klein, R. G., Mannuzza, S., Moulton, J. L., Guardino, M., Merikangas, A., Carlino, A. R., Pine, D. S. (2007). Memory deficits in children with and at risk for anxiety disorders. Depression and Anxiety, 24(2), 85-94.

Emotional Attention and Memory in Pediatric Anxiety Disorders

Principal Investigator: Roma A. Vasa, M.D.

This study aims to extend our knowledge of the attentional and memory processes that underlie anxiety.  Primarily, we will explore the possibility that anxiety is associated with an attentional bias toward threat, as well as a memory bias for negative emotional information. Subjects complete a behavioral task which examines attentional allocation when subjects are presented simultaneously with emotional and non-emotional information; the second part tests whether there are memory biases for the emotional stimuli. Boys and girls, ages 8 to 12 years, with one or more of the following disorders are eligible to participate: separation anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and social phobia. (IRB protocol #NA_00014313)

VOLUNTEERS being recruited for this study - Click here if you are interested.

Learn more about treatment of children and adolescents with Anxiety Disorders at Johns Hopkins