Completed

4DEffects of Dexmedetomidine on Delirium Duration of Non-intubated ICU Patients (4D Trial)

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What is being tested

Dexmedetomidine

+ Placebo

DrugOther
Who is being recruted

Aberrant Motor Behavior in Dementia+12

+ Behavior

+ Mental Disorders

Over 18 Years
See all eligibility criteria
How is the trial designed

Treatment Study

Placebo-ControlledPhase 3
Interventional
Study Start: December 2017
See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorUniversity Hospital, Clermont-Ferrand
Last updated: January 28, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Study start date: December 21, 2017

Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

Delirium during intensive care unit (ICU) stay is frequent and associated with significant morbidity, mortality and healthcare related costs. International guidelines suggest its prevention. However, curative treatment remains unclearly established. Despite a non-unequivocal literature, haloperidol is the first line recommended neuroleptic. Dexmedetomidine, an alpha2-adrenergic receptors agonist has shown its efficiency in the treatment of delirium in intubated patients but also in its prevention. Dexmedetomidine represents a widely used alternative to haloperidol. Only few studies have compared the efficacy of dexmedetomidine in non-intubated ICU patients as a first line curative treatment of delirium. Main objective of 4D trial is to demonstrate that dexmedetomidine decreases delirium duration compared to placebo. The 4D trial is an investigator-initiated, prospective, multicenter, randomized, double-blinded, two-arm trial, randomizing 300 non-intubated ICU patients with diagnosis of agitated delirium to receive dexmedetomidine or placebo as a cure. The primary outcome measure is a composite of duration of agitation or delirium or the use of intubation with deep sedation and mechanical ventilation. Secondary outcomes include mortalities at 7 and 28 days, ICU length of stay and occurrence of adverse effects. The sample size will allow the detection of a 50% decrease of agitation duration (120 minutes), of an absolute reduction of delirium duration (1 day) and of a 50% relative decrease of intubation and mechanical ventilation, with a type 1 error rate of 1.8 % (error risk inflation due to components of composite) and power of 90 %, assuming a 15 % incidence of intubation and mechanical ventilation requirements, an agitation duration of 240 minutes and a delirium duration of 3 days. One hundred and 10 patients by group will be needed. A intermediate analysis is scheduled and requires the inclusion of 150 patients in each group. The 4D trial may provide important data on the safety of commonly used sedative dexmedetomidine and could have a significant impact on future treatment of non-intubated ICU patients presenting with agitated delirium.

Official TitleEffects of Dexmedetomidine on Delirium Duration of Non-intubated ICU Patients (4D Trial)
NCT03317067
Principal SponsorUniversity Hospital, Clermont-Ferrand
Last updated: January 28, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
Design Details

151 patients to be enrolled

Total number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.

Treatment Study

These studies test new ways to treat a disease, condition, or health issue. The goal is to see if a new drug, therapy, or approach works better or has fewer side effects than existing options.



Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Conditions
Criteria

Any sex

Biological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.

Over 18 Years

Range of ages for which participants are eligible to join.

Healthy volunteers not allowed

If individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.

Conditions

Pathology

Aberrant Motor Behavior in DementiaBehaviorMental DisordersBehavioral SymptomsConfusionDeliriumNervous System DiseasesNeurologic ManifestationsPsychomotor AgitationPsychomotor DisordersSigns and SymptomsPathological Conditions, Signs and SymptomsNeurobehavioral ManifestationsNeurocognitive DisordersDyskinesias

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria: * • Age \> 18 years * Patient hospitalized in an ICU * Presenting a productive delirium according to the following criteria: * acute onset (\<2h) and fluctuating course during the same day * alteration of cognitive functions: disorganization of thought (delirium of persecution, inability to reason logically), abnormal perceptions (hallucinations), memory impairments, temporal disorientation, non- or misrecognitions, difficulties in naming objects or writing) * in whom a simple cropping and non-medicated therapeutics are not sufficient to allow symptoms' resolution for few hours * CAM-ICU positive AND a RASS \> +1 * Non-intubated or extubated (\> 24h) * No contraindication of dexmedetomidine or haloperidol uses Exclusion Criteria: * • Age \<18 years * Administration of dexmedetomidine and/or clonidine during the 72 hours before inclusion * Contraindication to the use of Dexmedetomidine, clonidine or haloperidol (history of allergy, Parkinson's disease, oro-pharyngeal dysfunction, arterial hypotension or bradycardia, QTc interval prolongation, and hepatic or renal dysfunction), as mentioned in the Summaries of Product Characteristics * Neuropsychiatric pathology judged by the investigator as a potential source of bias (in particular: active drug addiction, psychosis...) * Parturient or breast-feeding woman * Protected major (guardianship) * Patient's or relative's refusal to participate

Study Plan

Find out more about all the medication administered in this study, their detailed description and what they involve.
Treatment Groups
Study Objectives

2 intervention groups are designated in this study

50% chance of being blinded to the placebo group

Treatment Groups

Group I

Experimental
Patients in the Dexmedetomidine (interventional) group will be treated with a continuous infusion of dexmedetomidine in case of agitated delirium.

Group II

Placebo
Patients in the Normal Saline (control) group will be treated with a continuous infusion of normal saline in case of agitated delirium.

Study Objectives

Primary Objectives

Secondary Objectives

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.

This study has 1 location

Suspended

CHU Clermont-Ferrand

Clermont-Ferrand, FranceOpen CHU Clermont-Ferrand in Google Maps
CompletedOne Study Center
4D | Effects of Dexmedetomidine on Delirium Duration of Non-intubated ICU Patients (4D Trial) | PatLynk