Propranolol for Challenging Behaviors in Autism
Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT04047355. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.
Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.
Official title
A Pilot/Feasibility Study of the Use of High Dose Propranolol to Treat Severe and Chronic Challenging Behaviors in Adolescents and Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorders
Brief summary
Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.
Severe challenging behaviors such as aggression and self-injury can cause significant morbidity and decrease the quality of life for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). There are only two medications (Risperdal and Abilify) rigorously studied and FDA-approved for the treatment of irritability in individuals with ASD. These medications are not always successful and have many short and long-term side effects. Well-designed studies demonstrating efficacy and safety of alternative medication treatment choices are needed. There is preliminary evidence that high-dose propranolol can be effective in individuals with ASD who display severe aggression and have not responded to antipsychotics or mood stabilizers. Concerns regarding the safety of high dose propranolol have limited its clinical application. Well-designed clinical trials demonstrating the efficacy and safety of high dose propranolol will have significant effects on clinical practice and improve the physical and behavioral quality of life for an underserved subset of individuals with ASD. This study will pilot the safety and efficacy of high dose propranolol. The investigators will randomly assign participants to either propranolol or to placebo later crossing each participant over to the other group. As propranolol can cause changes in blood pressure and heart function, each participant will complete initial comprehensive testing to monitor cardiac safety throughout the study. The investigators will be utilizing telemedicine and computer based telemetry to minimize the burden of office visits on the individual and family.
Study identification
- NCT ID
- NCT04047355
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase 2
- Enrollment
- 8 participants
Conditions and interventions
Conditions
Eligibility (public fields only)
- Age range
- 12 Years to 30 Years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Healthy volunteers not accepted
This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.
Study timeline
- Start date
- Feb 10, 2021
- Primary completion
- Sep 29, 2023
- Completion
- Sep 29, 2023
- Last update posted
- Jun 3, 2025
2021 – 2023
United States locations
- U.S. sites
- 1
- U.S. states
- 1
- U.S. cities
- 1
| Facility | City | State | ZIP | Site status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School | New Brunswick | New Jersey | 08901 | — |
Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.
About this trial record page
- What this page shows
- Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT04047355, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
- What this page does not do
- No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
- Where the data comes from
- Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
- Last refresh
- Last update posted Jun 3, 2025 · Synced Sep 6, 2026
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Open the official record
The complete protocol, eligibility criteria, and contact information for NCT04047355 live on ClinicalTrials.gov.