Chronic Pain Clinical Trials

A randomized controlled study will test whether adults with chronic pain have improved outcomes when receiving a User Guide and weekly prompts for a newly designed Online Pain-Management Resource when compared to an active-control group that receives access to the Online Pain-Management Resource, but no User Guide or prompts. Outcomes of interest include measures of activity, sleep, pain and level of use of the online pain-management resource. Read Less

The goal of this clinical trial is to test whether adult stem cells, called mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) collected from the patient's bone marrow can help reduce pain caused by chronic pancreatitis and improve pancreatic function. Read Less

INSPIRE creates a trilingual mobile app and telehealth coaching program to promote non-pharmacologic strategies for pain management with Black, Chinese, and Latinx communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. Years 1-2 will develop the app and test it with a brief single arm pilot starting in Nov 2023. A full two arm randomized controlled trial (RCT) will being in early 2025 with changes in PEG scores as the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes include Helping to End Addiction Longterm (HEAL) common data elements. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of using wearable digital health technology for continuous monitoring of physiological, sleep, and physical activity data in adolescents with chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. This research aims to develop objective digital endpoints of the pain experience to improve diagnosis, prevention, and treatment outcomes. Read Less

This protocol aims to test whether an infusion of allogeneic bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (BM-MSCs) can reduce pain associated with chronic pancreatitis (CP) and explore potential mechanisms of MSC action. Read Less

Pain has been identified as among the most frequent presenting medical complaints, in particular within primary care for Veterans. There are few areas of daily living and functioning that pain intensity does not impact, with reported pain intensity related to difficulties in social situations and changes in activities of daily life, sleep, and appetite. Therapeutic interventions such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Chronic Pain (ACT-CP) that target issues related to the cognitions and emotional concerns related to chronic pain have been well-documented for reduction of associated psychiatric symptoms and modest pain relief. At the same time, online programming can improve the ability of pain psychoeducation programs and ACT-CP to reach patients. The proposed project will compare online Veteran ACT for Chronic Pain (VACT-CP) compared to another pain program, Online Pain School, to evaluate how they assist Veterans with chronic pain to improve their functioning, pain management, and quality of life. Read Less

The experience of chronic pain powerfully and negatively affects quality of life and functional independence in aging. Unfortunately, while as many as three in four older adults experience chronic pain, few have access to effective non-pharmacological pain management strategies. Participating in regular physical activity, avoiding sustained sitting, and maintaining a healthy weight are important and interrelated lifestyle inputs to chronic pain, and socially rich behavioral interventions informed by contemporary theories of behavior change appear important for engaging in activity and healthy eating in the long term. Our group has demonstrated in a series of Stage I trials that a group-mediated behavioral intervention combining dietary behavior change and a physical activity program focused on moving often throughout the day contributes to meaningful weight loss, and lasting weight maintenance, with pilot data suggesting this may contribute to improved pain, physical function, and health-related quality of life among older adults with chronic pain. As these were NIH Stage I trials, there are several important gaps to be addressed in the present trial: (1) both studies of chronic pain recruited small samples and were 12 weeks in duration, limiting our ability to establish efficacy and the durability of changes to activity, HRQOL, and pain outcomes; (2) participants included anyone with chronic pain, regardless of pain type, a likely contributor to heterogeneous pain intensity and interference findings; and (3) the investigators have yet to examine behavioral maintenance. The overarching goal of the proposed Stage II "mobile intervention to reduce pain and improve health-III (MORPH-III)" is to establish the efficacy of the intervention for enhancing physical activity via steps (primary), and for reducing pain interference and body weight while enhancing physical function (secondary) among older adults with chronic knee or hip osteoarthritic (OA) pain. The investigators will recruit 200 older adults with knee or hip osteoarthritic pain to engage in a 6-month remotely delivered intervention comprising weekly group or individual intervention meetings plus brief individual goal-setting coaching calls. This will be followed by a 12-month no-contact maintenance period, where participants will attempt to sustain behavioral goals on their own. The Specific Aims are: Specific Aim 1: To examine the impact of MORPH on ActivPAL-assessed daily steps relative to an enhanced usual care control. Hypotheses: MORPH will significantly increase steps relative to control at month 6. Specific Aim 2: To examine the impact of MORPH on pain interference, change in body weight, and physical function relative to the enhanced usual care control. Hypotheses: MORPH will result in significant reductions in pain interference and body weight and improvement in physical function relative to control at month 6. Exploratory Aims: Aim 1: To investigate the impact of the MORPH intervention on steps, weight change, pain interference, and physical function at month 18. Aim 2: If the MORPH intervention results in reduced pain interference at 6 and/or 18 months, the investigators will examine the extent to which 6-month change in steps, weight, pain self-efficacy, and catastrophizing mediate change in interference at 6 and/or 18 months. Read Less

Chronic pain is a major health concern for returning Veterans and is associated with decreases in quality of life. In addition, chronic pain is often accompanied by significant disturbance in sleep. Sensory interventions may offer effective, low-cost complementary tools for chronic pain and sleep disturbance in Veterans. Weighted Blankets (WB)- blankets sewn with weighted material inside to provide widespread pressure to the body- are a low-cost wellness product used for anxiety and sleep. WBs have demonstrated large reductions in insomnia, and the investigators have also shown that they can reduce the severity of chronic pain. However, effects and mechanisms of longer WB use have not been examined in individuals with pain and sleep disturbance. The investigators therefore propose a randomized controlled trial examining the effects of WBs on pain and sleep quality in Veterans. the investigators will recruit Veterans with chronic pain and sleep disturbance from the VA San Diego Healthcare System (VASDHS) and VA San Francisco Healthcare System (VASFHS) and randomize 160 Veterans to receive either a light (3-lb; N = 80) or heavy (15-lb; N = 80) blanket. The investigators will remotely collect measures of pain (primary), pain catastrophizing, and pain medication use, as well as sleep disturbance (primary) and sleep efficiency and total sleep time over 6 weeks of overnight home use of the assigned blanket. The investigators will also explore physiological effects of WBs on sleep quality using actigraphy (exploratory) in VASDHS participants. Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methods will be deployed via smartphone to capture study adherence. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of switching to very low nicotine content (VLNC) cigarettes versus normal nicotine content (NNC) cigarettes on craving, withdrawal, and pain among individuals with chronic pain who smoke cigarettes daily and are attending office-based buprenorphine treatment (OBBT). Read Less

The primary aim of this implementation-effectiveness trial is to examine the effectiveness of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE) and patient-centered chronic pain management visits in primary care as interventions to reduce chronic pain, improve quality of life, and reduce opioid-related harms among chronic pain patients on long-term opioid therapy. Read Less

The investigators propose to conduct a dose-escalation trial of an FDA-approved antiepileptic drug, lacosamide, added to opioid therapy in patients with chronic abdominal pain from chronic pancreatitis (CP). This pilot trial will test the feasibility of the study design and provide reassurance regarding the tolerability and safety of lacosamide used concomitantly with opioids in this patient population to reduce the condition known clinically as opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH). Read Less

This project is part of the NIH Helping to End Addiction Long-term (HEAL) initiative (https://heal.nih.gov/). This randomized controlled trial (RCT) is phase 2 of a two-phase, 5-year project with the overarching goal of testing a decision aid (DA)/coaching intervention, tailored to Black patients with comorbid chronic pain and depression, to encourage use of and adherence to nonpharmacological pain treatments (NPTs). This 2-arm trial will randomize 304 patients with comorbid chronic musculoskeletal pain and depression in primary care from an urban safety-net health system (Eskenazi). After the baseline assessment, patients randomized to the intervention will be asked to participate in 4 coaching sessions over approximately 12 weeks. Sessions will use Motivational Interviewing principles to foster openness to NPTs and self-efficacy by helping patients identify their goals and priorities, understand their NPT options, prepare them to discuss and choose options with their primary care providers (PCPs), and reinforce these choices to foster maintenance of these changes. DA contents will be integrated into these sessions, which will facilitate discussion of these options with their PCP. The first 3 sessions take place prior to the patient's next scheduled PCP visit; the final session occurs after this visit. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, 3 months (i.e., after completing the final coaching session), and 6 months. Patients randomized to the wait-list control group will receive usual care (in addition to study assessments at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months). After completing the final assessment, they will then be given the DA and offered a 20-minute coaching session to walk them through it. Read Less