Borderline Personality Disorder Clinical Trials 2023

What Are Borderline Personality Disorder Clinical Trials?

Borderline personality disorder is a mental health condition in which patients have trouble controlling and regulating emotions. Patients also experience mood swings and unstable relationships as loss of emotional control leads to increased impulsivity. Such individuals are at a higher risk of suicide and self-destructive behavior.

The current borderline personality clinical trials focus on analyzing and comparing different drugs and therapies for treatment.

Why Is Borderline Personality Disorder Being Studied Through Clinical Trials?

Around 1.4% of the adult population in the U.S. experiences BPD. Nearly 75% of people diagnosed with BPD are women. However, recent research suggests that men may be equally affected by BPD but are commonly misdiagnosed with PTSD or depression.

The causes of BPD are not clearly identified, but it could be a combination of genetics, environmental, or neurological factors. BPD leads to unstable self-image and relationships, chronic feelings, intense anger, and self-harming behavior.

What Are The Types of Treatments Available For Borderline Personality Disorder?

There are multiple treatments available for borderline personality disorder. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study conducted in 2018 evaluated the safety and efficacy of Brexpiprazole in adults with borderline personality disorder (BPD). Brexpiprazole has distinctive properties that make it a promising option for patients with BPD. Brexpiprazole is a novel D2 partial agonist, has an affinity for 5-HT1A, acts as an antagonist of the noradrenergic α1/2 receptor, partial agonist for D3, and antagonist for 5-HT2A (37-39). In addition, because of low rates of side effects, Brexpiprazole should be a well-tolerated and, in fact, desired medication approach to BPD.

Other studies focus on the application of different behavioral programs as interventions for people with BPD.

What Are Some Recent Breakthrough Clinical Trials For Borderline Personality Disorder?

2020: Pharmacotherapy for Borderline Personality Disorder - the study reviewed seven new randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for evaluating continued drug treatments in patients with BPD. The new findings do not support fluoxetine as a treatment option for suicide and self-harm prevention. Moreover, lamotrigine in routine care shows no beneficial effects. Thus, more research is required for commonly used substances for BPD.

2020: Psychological Therapies - this study assessed the beneficial and harmful effects of psychological therapies for people with BPD. More than 16 different kinds of psychotherapy were included, mostly dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and mentalization-based treatment (MBT). Results showed beneficial effects on all primary outcomes in favor of BPD‐tailored psychotherapy compared with TAU (Treatment As Usual).

Who Are Some Of The Key Opinion Leaders / Researchers / Institutions Conducting Borderline Personality Disorder Clinical Trial Research?

Marsha Linehan, PhD

Marsha Linehan, PhD is the Director Emeritus of the Behavioral Research and Therapy Clinics, a consortium of research projects developing new treatments and evaluating their efficacy for severely disordered and multi-diagnostic and suicidal populations.

McLean Hospital

The Gunderson Personality Disorders Institute at McLean Hospital creates awareness and training for evidence-based treatments for borderline personality disorder (BPD) and accompanying psychiatric conditions.