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Light Therapy for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

N/A
Waitlist Available
Led By Rebecca C Cox, PhD
Research Sponsored by University of Colorado, Boulder
Eligibility Criteria Checklist
Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial
Must have
Age 18-35
Primary OCD diagnosis (according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5)
Timeline
Screening 3 weeks
Treatment Varies
Follow Up 5 weeks

Summary

This trialstudies how light therapy could help adults with OCD who stay up late by improving their symptoms. Its results could explain how circadian rhythms affect OCD.

Who is the study for?
This trial is for English-speaking adults aged 18-35 with OCD and late bedtimes (1 AM or later). Participants must not be pregnant, breastfeeding, trying to get pregnant, using certain medications like beta-blockers or MAO inhibitors recently, have a current sleep disorder other than DSWPD/insomnia, or have had recent changes in psychotropic meds.
What is being tested?
The study is testing if light therapy can help improve symptoms of OCD. Participants will receive either actual light therapy or a placebo version without active treatment. The goal is to see if adjusting circadian rhythms affects OCD behaviors.
What are the potential side effects?
Light therapy may cause mild side effects such as eye strain, headache, irritability, nausea, and sleep disturbances. However, these are typically temporary and often resolve on their own.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

You may be eligible if you check “Yes” for the criteria below
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I am between 18 and 35 years old.
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I have been diagnosed with OCD as my main health issue.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks
Treatment ~ Varies
Follow Up ~5 weeks
This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and 5 weeks for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Study objectives can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.
Primary study objectives
Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised score
Secondary study objectives
Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale score
Other study objectives
Circadian phase

Trial Design

2Treatment groups
Active Control
Placebo Group
Group I: Active treatmentActive Control1 Intervention
Active light therapy
Group II: Control treatmentPlacebo Group2 Interventions
Placebo light therapy

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Who is running the clinical trial?

University of Colorado, BoulderLead Sponsor
124 Previous Clinical Trials
29,400 Total Patients Enrolled
Rebecca C Cox, PhDPrincipal InvestigatorUniversity of Colorado, Boulder
~6 spots leftby Jan 2026
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