Characteristics of studies included in the qualitative review but excluded from the meta-analysis
| Study | Population or clinical diagnosis | Propranolol/placebo | Male/ female, % | Age, yr, mean ± SD | Study protocol | Outcome measures of interest | Primary results of interest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. enrolled | No. on test day or post-treatment | |||||||
| Brunet et al.30 (2011; study 1) | Chronic PTSD | 28/0 | 28/0 | 32/68 | 37.9 ± 9.5 | Week 1: pre-treatment assessment Week 2: 0.67 mg/kg (short-acting) followed by 1 mg/kg (long-acting), script preparation 90 min later Weeks 3–7: propranolol (short-and long-acting, same dose) 90 min before reactivation Week 8: post-treatment assessment Follow-up: 6 mo after pre-treatment | CAPS and PCL pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up | Scores pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up (mean ± SD) PCL:60.4 ± 11.4, 37.9 ± 14.9 and 36.0 ± 15.1 CAPS:71.8 ± 18.6, 45.8 ± 21.9 and 42.7 ± 24.6 |
| Brunet et al.30 (2011; study 2) | Chronic PTSD | 7/0 | 7/0 | 29/71 | 40.1 ± 11.8 | Week 1: pre-treatment assessment Week 2: 40 mg (short-acting) followed by 80 mg (long-acting) and oral script preparation 90 min later Weeks 3–7: propranolol (short-and long-acting, same dose) 90 min before reactivation Week 8: post-treatment assessment Follow-up: 6 mo after pre-treatment | CAPS pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up | Scores pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up (mean ± SD) CAPS:68.4 ± 15.8, 35.6 ± 31.2 and 34.1 ± 33.2 |
| Brunet et al.30 (2011; study 3) | Chronic PTSD | 7/0 | 7/0 | 29/71 | 47.9 ± 15.7 | Week 1: pre-treatment assessment Week 2: 40 mg (short-acting) followed by 80 mg (long-acting) and script preparation 90 min later Weeks 3–7: 80 mg (long-acting) 90 min before reactivation Week 8: post-treatment assessment Follow-up: 6 mo after pre-treatment | PCL 6 mo post-disaster, pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up | Score 6 mo post-disaster, pre-treatment, post-treatment and follow-up (mean ± SD) PCL: 60.9 ± 5.3, 60.7 ± 4.1, 41.0 ± 4.3 and 38.4 ± 3.6 |
| Deng et al.51 (2020; experiment 1) | Differential fear conditioning | 15/16 | 15/16 | % female Propranolol: 53.3 Placebo: 50 | Propranolol: 23.71 ± 0.19 Placebo: 23.47 ± 0.46 | Day 1: learning Day 2: 40 mg 60 min before reactivation Day 3: long-term memory test | SCR to unconditioned stimulus on day 3 at reinstatement | Propranolol < placebo on SCR to unconditioned stimulus on day 3 at reinstatement |
| Deng et al.51 (2020; experiment 2) | Differential fear conditioning | 18/17 | 18/17 | % female Propranolol: 42.9 Placebo: 52.9 | Propranolol: 23.67 ± 0.48 Placebo: 23.24 ± 0.50 | Day 1: learning 2 wk later: 40 mg propranolol before reactivation 24 h later: long-term memory test | SCR to unconditioned stimulus stimulus at visit 3 | Unconditioned stimulus retrieval + propranolol blocked the return of fear (SCR) at reinstatement |
| Kroes et al.49 (2016) | Differential fear conditioning | 23/24 | 22/24 | 41/59 | 21.72 ± 2.2 | Day 1: learning Day 2: 40 mg 60 min before reactivation Day 3: long-term memory task | SCR, explicit memory and subjective experience of fear on day 3 | Propranolol < placebo on SCR and explicit memory, but not subjective experience of fear at day 3 |
| Lin et al.59 (2021) | Nicotine dependence | 27/25 | 27/25 | 100/0 | Propranolol: 27.8 ± 6.69 Placebo: 28.24 ± 7.94 | Day 1: baseline and cue-induced craving Day 2: 40 mg 60 min before reactivation (smoking-related pictures) Day 3: baseline and cue-induced craving | Baseline craving measured with FNDT; cue-induced craving measured with brain imaging on day 3 | Significant reduction in craving in propranolol group only; propranolol < placebo on FNDT and cue-induced reactivity on day 3 |
| Mahabir et al.55 (2015) | Chronic PTSD | 9/0 | 7/0 | 29/71 | 33.1 ± 7.0 | Week 1: pre-treatment assessments and script preparation Week 2: fMRI session Weeks 3–8: 1 mg/kg 75 min before reactivation with script Week 9: fMRI session Week 10: diagnostic assessment | CAPS and IES-R pre-treatment and post-treatment | Score pre-treatment and post-treatment (mean ± SD) CAPS: 80.4 ± 17.6 and 41.0 ± 27.2 IES-R: 62.8 ± 12.9 and 24.4 ± 23.4 |
| Saladin et al.25 (2013) | Cocaine dependence | 35/32 | 26/24 | 66/34 | Propranolol: 39.1 ± 8.2 Placebo: 40.8 ± 9.8 | Day 1: 40 mg immediately after CCE sequence Day 2: CCE session with no medication Follow-up: 1 wk | CDMS, heart rate and SCR to CCE on day 2 and at follow-up | Propranolol < placebo on CDMS and heart rate but not SCR |
| Wood et al.57 (2015) | Chronic PTSD | 12/0 | 10/0 (n = 8 no reactivation + propranolol) | 100/0 | 38.7 ± 14.9 | Day 2: 0.67 mg/kg (short-acting) 90 min before reactivation and 1 mg/kg (long-acting) immediately before reactivation (script preparation) Day 8: script-driven imagery | Heart rate, SCR and IES-R to script on day 8 | Propranolol = placebo on heart rate, SCR and IES-R on day 8 |
CAPS = Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale; CCE = cocaine cue exposure; CDMS = Craving/Distress/Mood States scale; fMRI = functional MRI; FNDT = Fagerstrom Nicotine Dependence Test; IES-R = Impact of Event Scale–Revised; PCL = PTSD Checklist; PTSD = posttraumatic stress disorder; SCR = skin conductance response; SD = standard deviation.