Pain Paid Clinical Trials in Massachusetts

This is a prospective, randomized, controlled, non-inferiority study of patients undergoing tonsil surgeries at Boston Children's Hospital Waltham. The overall aim is to evaluate the efficacy of an opioid anesthetic plan (morphine, ketorolac, and acetaminophen versus an opioid sparing anesthetic plan (dexmedetomidine, ketorolac and acetaminophen) for perioperative analgesia and recovery time in patients undergoing tonsillectomies and tonsillotomies at Boston Children's Hospital Waltham. Secondary measures include rescue opioids administered in post-anesthesia care unit (PACU), re-operation secondary to bleeding, emergence delirium, post-operative nausea and vomiting, intraoperative hemodynamics, intraoperative vasopressor administration, and length of procedure. Read Less

This study will use a randomized controlled design to test whether medical marijuana use by adults on high-dose chronic opioid therapy (COT) for chronic non-cancer pain is associated with reduced opioid dose and improved pain intensity and interference when added to a 24-week behavioral intervention (POTS). Read Less

This study will examine the pain-relieving effects of a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator device called a Quell for persons with multiple chronic overlapping pain conditions. Read Less

The present study aims to adapt and modify a brief presurgical Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) intervention aimed at preventing the transition to Chronic Post-Surgical Pain (CPSP) and reducing long-term opioid use. Investigators will then assess the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of the finalized intervention to prevent the transition to CPSP and reduce post-surgical opioid use six months following lumbar spine surgery. Finally, investigators will identify psychosocial and psychophysical phenotypes associated with response to this intervention. Read Less

This is an observational study that is intended to determine the capacity of three technologies to serve as diagnostic biomarkers for myofascial pain syndrome. Investigators will seek patients with myofasical pain syndrome as well as healthy subjects for this study. Electrical impedance myography (EIM), myofiber threshold tracking (TT) excitability testing, and ultrasound with shear wave elastography (SWE) measurements will be obtained from the trapezius muscle (the muscle that extends over the back of the neck and shoulders). These measurements will be repeated within 2-5 days to assess repeatability of these methods. Read Less

This is a Platform Protocol to perform Phase II clinical trials in The Early Phase Pain Investigation Clinical Network (EPPIC-Net), under The Helping to End Addiction Long-termSM Initiative, or NIH HEAL InitiativeSM, related to the treatment of Painful Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy (PDPN) in a platform setting to test multiple assets under a single protocol. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to investigate the safety and efficacy of the current hard gelatin capsule formulation of NRD135S.E1 80 mg once daily in the treatment of PDPN when administered for 13 weeks. Read Less

The study investigators are interested in learning more about how drugs, that are given to children by their health care provider, act in the bodies of children and young adults in hopes to find the most safe and effective dose for children. The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the PK of understudied drugs currently being administered to children per SOC as prescribed by their treating provider. Read Less

The study is being conducted to learn why some patients with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) do not respond to a commonly used treatment drug, Finasteride. The hope is to find ways to predict which patients will not respond to Finasteride so that, in the future, these patients can be identified prior to offering this treatment and they can be offered alternative treatment strategies in its place. The aim is to see if noninvasive techniques such as MRI can detect inflammation of the prostate to assist with early detection of those who will and who will not respond to Finasteride. Read Less

This phase II trial studies how well low-dose radiotherapy works in treating bone pain in patients with multiple myeloma that has spread to the bone. Radiation therapy uses high energy x-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons, or other sources to kill tumor cells and shrink tumors. Low-dose radiotherapy may be more convenient for patients and their families, may not interfere as much with the timing of chemotherapy, and may have less chance for short term or long-term side effects from the radiation. Read Less

Menstrual pain is the most common gynecological complaint and the leading cause of school and work absences in reproductive-age girls and women. One of the primary treatments for menstrual pain is use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs; over-the-counter medications such as naproxen, ibuprofen, or aspirin), although up to 18% of women do not get pain relief from these medications. One reason for this may be due to central sensitization of pain, which is when alterations in the central nervous system change how pain is processed in the brain and experienced. Determining the role of central sensitization in menstrual pain is important because central sensitization is associated with the development of chronic pain. Understanding the relationship between NSAID response and central sensitization is important because it could indicate women who may go on to develop chronic pain later in life. This study would directly address this question. Identifying women at risk for chronic pain would help target new treatments to this vulnerable group to ideally prevent pain from becoming chronic. This is particularly important for women in the military because the severity of menstrual pain is associated with missed work, such that in active-duty military women, less than 4.4% with mild menstrual pain missed work, whereas 20.7% of women with moderate to severe menstrual pain missed work. Addressing the significant impact of menstrual pain for military women will help reducing suffering and potentially decrease the risk of developing future chronic pain problems in this population. Read Less

VETERANS ONLY. Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is common. Most Americans will have at least one episode of low back pain in their lifetimes. Approximately 50% of all US Veterans have chronic pain, and CLBP is the most common type of pain in this population. This study will use a sequential randomized, pragmatic, 2-step comparative effectiveness study design. The main goal is to identify the best approach for treating cLBP using commonly recommended non-surgical and non-pharmacological options. The first step compares continued care and active monitoring (CCAM) to internet-based pain self-management (Pain EASE) and an enhanced physical therapy intervention that combines Pain EASE with tailored exercise and physical activity. Patients who do not have a significant decrease in pain interference (a functional outcome) in Step 1 and those desiring additional treatment will be randomized in Step 2 to yoga, spinal manipulation therapy (SMT), or therapist-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Participants proceeding to randomization in Step 2 will be allowed to exclude up to one of the three Step 2 treatments based on their preferences. The investigators' primary hypothesis for the first treatment step is that an enhanced physical therapy intervention that combines pain self-management education with a tailored exercise program will reduce pain interference greater than internet-based pain self-management alone or CCAM in Veterans with cLBP. The primary outcome is change in pain interference at 3 months, measured using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) pain interference subscale. Study participants will be followed for one year after initiation of their final study treatments to assess the durability of treatment effects. The study plans to randomize 2529 patients across 20 centers. Read Less