Pain Paid Clinical Trials in Maryland

This study will examine the safety of giving the experimental drug, resiniferatoxin (RTX), to treat severe pain in patients with advanced cancer. RTX is a chemical extracted from a cactus-like plant. It is similar to capsaicin, the active ingredient in hot pepper. RTX has relieved pain and reduced the need for pain medication in several animal experiments. It works by destroying nerves that transmit pain information. People at least 18 years of age with severe pain from advanced cancer at or below the level of the chest that cannot be controlled with standard treatments may be eligible for this study. Participants undergo the following procedures: Pretreatment Visit Before beginning treatment with RTX, patients give a medical history and undergo a physical examination that includes: Electrocardiogram (EKG) Blood draw Urinalysis Neurological examinations Peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) Eye examination MRI Urology assessment Pregnancy test, when appropriate Questionnaires to collect information on health, personality, mood, pain levels and symptoms. 2-Day Hospitalization Patients are hospitalized for 2 days for RTX injection and monitoring, as follows: RTX injection: RTX is injected in the operating room under general anesthesia. It is given through a catheter placed in the patient s spine. The catheter is also used to obtain samples of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) the clear fluid that bathes the spinal cord. The fluid is examined to assess drug effects and side effects, chemical changes in the content of the CSF associated with RTX, and how RTX is handled by the body. Post-injection monitoring, including: Surveys about symptoms such as pain or weakness Neurological examinations Blood and CSF sampling EKG AEs Outpatient followup Vitals Blood draw, Urinalysis, neurological and sensory testing, EKG on days 7, 14 and 30 after the injection MRI scans of the head and back, Urology assessment and PEFR on day 15 after the injection Eye examination Follow-up phone calls monthly for 6 months Read Less

Background: - Researchers are interested in how the muscles affect the movement of the knee cap. These muscles may be related to different kinds of knee pain that are not caused by an injury or a disease. Imaging studies such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to look at these muscles. To study these muscles and how they move, researchers will use MRI to look at healthy individuals and individuals with knee cap pain. Objectives: - To study how changes to the muscles around the knee can influence knee pain. Eligibility: Individuals between 18 to 55 years of age who have knee cap pain that cannot be explained by a specific injury or disease. Healthy volunteers between 18 and 55 years of age. Design: Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. This study requires two visits. Each visit will use standard MRI sequences to take images of the knee in motion and at rest. On the first visit, the MRI scan will look at the knee in its natural state. Participants will move the knee up and down for 1 to 3 minutes at a time during the scan. On the second visit, a local anesthetic agent will be injected into the muscle of the thigh. The anesthetic will block this muscle from generating force for 2 or 3 hours. Participants will move the knee up and down for 1 to 3 minutes at a time during the MRI scan. Read Less

This study will evaluate de-identified (anonymous) data in subject medical charts to review the clinical outcomes of various treatment approaches in the treatment of chronic pain. Read Less

Quantitative Sensory Testing (QST) is a novel investigative technique used in other pain conditions to evaluate patterns of chronic pain, and in this study will be used to elucidate pain patterns in patients with Chronic Pancreatitis (CP). QST uses a specific series of standardized stimulations to map the pain system. QST has the potential to change and improve the treatment paradigm for patients with CP and may eventually be able to predict response to invasive CP therapies. Read Less

The purpose of this randomized pragmatic trial is to assess the effect of monthly booster contacts on long-term Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain (BCBT-CP) pain outcomes compared to BCBT-CP without a booster in 716 Military Health Systems (MHS) beneficiaries referred to a Behavioral Health Consultant (BHC) for pain management using BCBT-CP. Patients will be randomly assigned to receive either standard BCBT-CP (working with a BHC in the medical home clinic) or standard BCBT-CP with adjunctive monthly booster contacts. Additionally, patient participants and clinic providers and staff will be offered the opportunity to participate in separate post-treatment Focus Groups using a semi-structured interview format designed to assess the usability, ease of use, perceived effectiveness, helpfulness, and barriers to the pain management intervention. Patient participants will be assessed 3-, 6-, 12- and 18-Months following their first appointment for BCBT-CP. Read Less

The investigators hypothesize that the utilization of Incrediwear's Back Brace, compared to a sham brace and a standard-issue brace, will lead to better brace adherence, increased patient satisfaction, reduced pain medication usage, and improved functional disability among non-surgical chronic LBP patients. Read Less

STACI is a prospective, multicenter, study of SIJ fusion using the iFuse TORQ implant system. Read Less

Background: Researchers want to better understand pain by studying people with and without different kinds of pain. To do this, researchers will expose people to pleasant and unpleasant sensations. They will ask them questions about their pain. Researchers also want to see if these people are eligible for other research studies at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Objectives: To study the experience of pain. Also to find people eligible to join other NIH studies. Eligibility: People 12 years and older with and without pain disorders. Design: Participants will be screened by phone. Participants will have one required visit. This may include: Medical history Physical exam Questionnaires about themselves and their pain experience Blood and urine tests MRI: They will lie on a table that slides into a cylinder. They will feel different sensations while completing tasks on a computer. This lasts 15 minutes to 2 hours. Quantitative sensory testing: They will be exposed to different pictures, sounds, tastes, and smells. They will also be exposed to pleasant and unpleasant sensations. These could include: Burning, itching, or cold sensations Pinpricks Pressure and pinches Electrocardiogram: Stickers on the chest record heart activity. Straps placed around the chest to measure breathing. Small sensors on the fingers or palms to measure pulse and sweating. Over the next 36 months, participants may have up to 12 other study visits. These last 2 to 4 hours each. They include repeats of some of the tests in the required visit. Participants may be recorded at the visits. Read Less

This clinical study is a randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, parallel group, multi-center, active and placebo-controlled trial evaluating the analgesic efficacy and safety of NTM-001 in subjects with moderately severe postoperative pain after bunionectomy surgery. This study is designed to compare the efficacy of NTM-001 to placebo. Intravenous (IV) morphine serves as an active comparator to determine assay sensitivity and support assessment of opioid-level analgesia for NTM-001. Effectiveness, safety, and tolerability parameters will be descriptively compared between treatment arms. Read Less

African American women who are 50 years of age and older with depressive symptoms, pain and difficulty with mobility will participate in the DAPPER intervention study that includes 8 nurse visits in participants' homes to help participants with participants' pain and mood. Read Less

Background: Negative emotional states can affect a person s behavior as they make decisions. For example, hunger may make people more impatient; they may then make riskier choices. Other negative emotional states that can change behavior include stress, pain, and sadness. By learning more about how emotions affect thinking and behavior in healthy people, researchers hope to better understand how to identify and treat people with mental disorders. Objective: To learn how negative emotions affect the brain and decision-making behavior. Eligibility: Healthy people aged 18 to 55 years. Design: Participants will have 3 clinic visits in 3 weeks. Participants will fill out questionnaires. They will be asked about their personal history, their personality, and state of mind. For 2 visits, participants will be assigned to different groups. Each group will experience 3 type of emotional stressor: Some participants will watch a video. Some will have to do arithmetic problems. Some will have heat applied to an arm or leg. Some will experience cold by immersing their hand in ice water. For a snack craving test, some will be tempted by food after a 4-hour fast. During these tests, participants will have sensors attached to their bodies. They will be videotaped. Saliva samples will be collected. After the stressors, participants will do tasks on a computer. They will need to make choices. Some participants will perform these decision-making tasks while lying in a brain scanner for functional magnetic resonance imaging. The brain scan involves lying on a table that slides into a cylinder that takes images of the brain. Read Less

This study will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound images to study how muscles, tendons, and bones work together to cause motion. The procedure is one of several tools being developed to characterize normal and impaired musculoskeletal function, with the goal of developing improved methods of diagnosis and treatment of movement disorders. Healthy normal volunteers must be age 5 to unlimited, with or without joint impairment, may be eligible for this study. Volunteers with joint impairment may not have serious injury to the joint being studied, previous surgery on the joint being studied, or extreme pain at the joint being studied. MRI uses a strong magnet and radio waves to create images of the inside of the body. The subject lies on a long narrow couch inside a metal cylinder (the scanner) for up to 3 hours while the scanner gathers data. Earplugs are worn to muffle loud noises caused by electrical switching of radiofrequency circuits used in the scanning process. A special pad or tube may be placed over or around the region being scanned to improve the quality of the data. The subject will be asked to repeatedly move a specific joint, such as the knee, for brief periods, usually less than 5 minutes. The subject can communicate via intercom with the person performing the study at all times during the procedure, and may request to stop the study at any time. Read Less