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Trial · Interventional

CompletedPhase 2Results postedRegistry data

Intranasal Oxytocin for the Treatment of Children and Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

Short name OXY-R

Overview

Status
Completed
Phase
Phase 2
Enrollment
60 participants (actual)
Sponsor
Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital · Other
Design
Randomized · Quadruple masking
Countries
2 countries

United States, Canada

Start
Sept 2013
Primary completion
Sept 2015
Completion
Mar 2016
First posted
25 Jul 2013 (estimated)
Last update posted
16 Jul 2025
Conditions
Autism Spectrum Disorder

Timeline

1 trial · 1 completed · 1 with posted results

  • Completed
  • Ongoing
  • Not yet recruiting
  • Stopped
  • Estimated dates (est.)
  • Results posted
20132014201520162017
  1. Ph 2

    OXY-R

    NCT01908205

    Sept 2013 to Mar 2016

Registry summary

Text and fields below are the sponsor's entries at ClinicalTrials.gov, shown as posted.

We are studying an investigational drug called intranasal oxytocin (Syntocinon®). Syntocinon® has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in helping women breastfeed, but it has not been approved for use in children with ASD. However, there is previous research conducted that has indicated that after administration of oxytocin, adults with ASD demonstrated improvements in social cognition, and reduced repetitive behaviours and anxiety. There is also early research to suggest that children may also benefit in these areas. The purpose of this study is to test if oxytocin works to help children and adolescents with ASD.

Interventions

  • Intranasal OxytocinDrug
  • PlaceboDrug

Arms2

  • Experimental

    Intranasal Oxytocin (Syntocinon)

    The proposed dosing schedule is 0.4 IU/kg, taken twice daily, for a maximum of 24 IUs per dose

  • Placebo comparator

    Placebo

    The proposed dosing schedule is 0.4 IU/kg, taken twice daily, for a maximum of 24 IUs per dose

Primary outcomes1

Outcomes the sponsor listed as primary.

  1. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Function

    Time frame · 12 and 24 weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by a change in score on the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) - Social Withdrawal Subscale (0-48, where lower scores indicate improvement)

Secondary outcomes(10)
  1. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Cognition

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by a change in score the Revised Eyes Test (0- 28; where higher scores indicate better performance/improvement) Baseline to Week 12

  2. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Cognition

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by improvement on the Let's Face it! Skills Battery from Baseline to Week 12 Social Cognition (higher score=better outcome) a. Let's Face It Skills Battery; i. Matchmaker (0-100); ii. Faces (0-100); iii. Houses (0-100)

  3. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Function

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by improvement on the Behavioral Assessment System for Children (BASC-2) from Baseline to Week 12 Behavioral Assessment System for Children (higher score=positive response); i. \*Social Skills: age 6 to 11 (18-69); age 12 to 17 (21-70); ii. Functional Communication: age 6 to 11 (10-66); age 12 to 17 (10-64); iii. Withdrawal age 6-11 (21- 62) ; age 12-17 (14-42) \* only social subscales of BASC-2 reported

  4. Number of Participant Considered Social Responders

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by the Clinical Global Impressions - Improvement Scale - Social (CGI-I-Social) a) Clinical Global Impressions - Social Scale (1-7) (lower score=positive response). The results will be reported as the number of participants that were classified as a social responder (achieving a score of 1 or 2 on the scale).

  5. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Repetitive Behaviors

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by improvement on the Child Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS) from Baseline to Week 12 -lower score= positive response (0-20)

  6. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Repetitive Behaviors

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by improvement on the Repetitive Behavior Scale (RBS-R)(0-129; where lower score= positive response) from Baseline to Week 12

  7. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Anxiety

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by the Child and Adolescent Symptom Inventory (CASI-4R) Generalized anxiety score (male (40-101); female (41-96) -where lower score= positive response) from Baseline to Week 12

  8. Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Quality of Life

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by improvement on the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) (0-100, where higher scores indicate positive response) from Baseline to Week 12

  9. Number of Participant Considered Overall Responders

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by the Clinical Global Impressions - Improvement Scale - Global (CGI-I-Global) (1-7) (lower score=positive response). The results will be reported as the number of participants that were classified as an overall responder (achieving a score of 1 or 2 on the scale).

  10. Safety and Tolerability of Intranasal Oxytocin in Children and Adolescents With ASD

    Time frame · 12 Weeks

    Registry description

    This will be measured by the Safety Monitoring Uniform Report Form (SMURF)

Posted results

Values are shown as posted at ClinicalTrials.gov, with their units. PepBank has not converted, pooled or compared them.

Primary outcome results

Primary outcomeMean· 12 and 24 weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Function

GroupValue (units on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin-2.43
Placebo-3.06
Secondary and other outcome results(7)
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Cognition

GroupValue (score on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin0.14
Placebo-0.29
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Cognition

GroupValue (units on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin4.50
Placebo5.90
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Social Function

GroupValue (score on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin1.40
Placebo0.43
Secondary outcomeCount of participants· 12 Weeks

Number of Participant Considered Social Responders

GroupValue (Participants)
Intranasal Oxytocin6
Placebo10
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Repetitive Behaviors

GroupValue (units on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin-2.77
Placebo-2.99
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Repetitive Behaviors

GroupValue (units on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin-6.74
Placebo-4.62
Secondary outcomeMean· 12 Weeks

Efficacy of Intranasal Oxytocin vs. Placebo on Measures of Anxiety

GroupValue (units on a scale)
Intranasal Oxytocin-4.45
Placebo-2.30

Adverse events, as posted

Adverse events as posted: participants affected out of participants at risk, by group
GroupDeathsSerious eventsOther events
Intranasal Oxytocin (Syntocinon)The proposed dosing schedule is 0.4 IU/kg, taken twice daily, for a maximum of 24 IUs per dose Intranasal Oxytocin0 / 300 / 3028 / 30
PlaceboThe proposed dosing schedule is 0.4 IU/kg, taken twice daily, for a maximum of 24 IUs per dose Placebo0 / 300 / 3025 / 30

Each cell reads participants affected / participants at risk, as the registry posted them.

Registry data comes from ClinicalTrials.gov. Study results come from studies, not from the registry. How PepBank works

Studies0

Studies that cite this trial.

No study cites this trial.

Other registry references

References listed at the registry that are not in PepBank. They link to PubMed.

  • DerivedIffland M, Livingstone N, Jorgensen M, Hazell P, Gillies D. Pharmacological intervention for irritability, aggression, and self-injury in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2023 Oct 9;10(10):CD011769. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011769.pub2. PMID 37811711

Eligibility

Who could join, as posted.

Sex
All
Age
from 10 Years up to 17 Years
Healthy volunteers
Not accepted
Inclusion and exclusion criteria, as posted
Inclusion Criteria 1. Male or female outpatients, 10-17 years of age inclusive. 2. Meet Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV) criteria will be established by a clinician with expertise with individuals with ASD. Best estimate Diagnosis will be reached using DSM-IV criteria, the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI-R). 3. Have a Clinician's Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) score ≥ 4 (moderately ill) at Screening. 4. Verbal and performance scale Intelligence Quotient (IQ) ≥ 70 (both subtests of the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI-I or WASI-II ≥ 70). 5. If already receiving stable concomitant medications affecting behavior, have continuous participation for 1 month prior to Screening (with the exception of fluoxetine, where a period of 6 weeks is needed), and not electively initiate new or modify ongoing medications for the duration of the study. 6. If already receiving stable non-pharmacologic educational, behavioral, and/or dietary interventions, have continuous participation during the preceding 3 months prior to Screening, and not electively initiate new or modify ongoing interventions for the duration of the study. 7. Have normal physical examination and laboratory test results at Screening. If abnormal, the finding(s) must be deemed not clinically significant by the Treating Clinician. 8. Ability to speak and understand English sufficiently to allow for the completion of all study assessments. 9. Ability to obtain written informed consent from the participant, if developmentally appropriate. If a participant does not have the capacity to consent, ability to obtain assent (if developmentally appropriate), as well as written informed consent from their parent(s)/legal guardian. Exclusion Criteria 1. Patients born prior to 35 weeks gestational age. 2. Patients with a primary psychiatric diagnosis other than ASD. 3. Patients with a medical history of neurological disease, including, but not limited to, epilepsy/seizure disorder (except simple febrile seizures), movement disorder, tuberous sclerosis, fragile X, and any other known genetic syndromes, or known abnormal brain MRI/structural lesion. 4. Pregnant female patients, sexually active female patients on hormonal birth control and sexually active females who do not use at least two types of non-hormonal birth control. 5. Patients with evidence or history of malignancy or any significant hematological, endocrine, cardiovascular (including any rhythm disorder), respiratory, renal, hepatic, or gastrointestinal disease. 6. Patients with one or more of the following: HIV, Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus, hemophilia (bleeding problems, recent nose and brain injuries), abnormal blood pressure (hypotension or hypertension), drug abuse, immunity disorder or severe depression. 7. Patients who are currently taking oxytocin or have taken intranasal oxytocin in the past with no response. 8. Patients with a sensitivity to oxytocin or any components of its formulation. 9. Patients unable to tolerate venipuncture procedures for blood sampling. 10. Patients in foster care for whom the province/state is defined as a legal guardian

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