Skip to main content
. 2018 Dec 14;2018(12):CD011710. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011710.pub2

ACTRN12616000956404.

Study name Internet‐based intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in soldiers: exploring mechanisms of treatment outcome.
Methods Randomised controlled trial. Central randomisation by computer software using a random number generator.
Participants Inclusion criteria
Treatment group/wait list control group
  • German‐speaking soldiers (active and out of duty) of the German Armed Forces

  • PTSD

  • Must have access to the Internet


Healthy controls group
  • German‐speaking soldiers of the German Armed Forces

  • Experienced a potentially traumatic event or who have never experienced a potentially traumatic event


Exclusion criteria
Treatment group/wait list control group
  • People with schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders (ICD‐10: F20‐F29)

  • Suicidal patients

  • People with acute manic episode

  • People with acute substance abuse or dependence

  • People receiving concurrent psychotherapeutic treatment


Healthy controls group
  • People fulfil criteria of PTSD or any other mental disorder

Interventions Experimental arm
Therapist‐guided Internet‐based intervention delivered via an online platform lasts 5 weeks and includes 10 structured writing assignments. Participants complete 2 assignments per week. Each assignment requires approximately 45 minutes of writing time.
Comparator arm
The wait list intervention group receives the same treatment as described above after an initial waiting period of 6 weeks. Participants in this group are seen for the initial assessment and pass through 1 additional assessment before the beginning of the treatment phase. The treatment procedure hereafter is identical to the protocol above.
Outcomes Time point for assessment: post‐treatment, 3‐month follow‐up, 6‐month follow‐up, and 12‐month follow‐up
Primary outcomes: PCL‐5, CAPS
Secondary outcomes: PHQ, GAD‐7, SWLS, DERS, PTCI. PTGI, CSS
Starting date 22 August 2016
Contact information Prof Christine Knaevelsrud
Freie Universitaet Berlin
christine.knaevelsrud@fu‐berlin.de
Notes www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=370924