Clinical Trials
Goals of MIST clinical trials
Research highlight
CannSleep: Exploring the relationship between cannabis and sleep in a nationally representative Canadian cohort and randomized controlled trial in PTSD
MIST researcher Dr. Leah Mayo is leading a new clinical trial investigating whether THC or CBD, two compounds found in cannabis, can improve sleep and symptoms in people living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The study will involve 150 participants across the Universities of Calgary and Ottawa, using brain imaging and sleep monitoring to evaluate how these treatments affect sleep, PTSD symptoms and brain function over eight weeks.
By exploring new treatment options and better understanding the relationship between sleep and PTSD, this research aims to advance more effective, targeted care for people living with trauma-related mental health conditions.
MIST clinical trials will focus on three key areas:
Major depression is the most common mental health condition — and is highly correlated with suicidality. Sadly, none of the (many) medications produce robust remission in the majority of patients (and very few influence suicidality). MIST will examine the effectiveness of novel approaches that combine existing treatments to enhance their ability to reduce symptoms of depression, including suicidality. MIST will also focus on suicidal individuals to find treatments that can rapidly help them.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety and trauma-related disorder that develops in the aftermath of an individual being exposed to a traumatic event (eg. an episode of violence, car accident, natural disaster, etc.). PTSD can be highly debilitating and involves an increased risk of developing other mental health and substance use disorders. Currently treatment options for PTSD are limited and do not work that well — so MIST will investigate novel approaches to treat PTSD.
MIST will characterize the types of mental health conditions that emerge in the aftermath of a traumatic brain injury (TBI) to understand which ones are associated with TBI — something that is not currently known. MIST will then test the effectiveness of both established and novel treatments for these mental health conditions, such as depression, in people with TBI to determine if they do in fact work in this population (and if they do, giving doctors new options to help their patients).
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There are ongoing opportunities for you to engage and be a part of MIST research. Learn how you can contribute to advancing our research goals — and be a vital part of saving future lives — by joining a MIST clinical trial.
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