Pain Clinical Trials in Pittsburgh, PA

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of acute pain on long-term memory and conditioned physiologic responses in the presence and absence of low dose nitrous oxide. Functional magnetic resonance imaging will be used to identify the neural correlates of these phenomena. The study will occur over 2 visits and involves no long-term follow up. Read Less

The NSS-2 BRIDGE® device (NSS stands for Neuro-Stimulation System) is a disposable device that stimulates the branches of cranial nerves and of the superficial cervical plexus innervating the ear. Because the stimulation of the nerves of the ear by the NSS-2 BRIDGE® device (NBD®) has been shown to modulate pain pathways in rodents, decrease abdominal pain in adolescents with inflammatory bile syndrome and due to the results of our preliminary pilot study, the investigators hypothesized that this technique may also be effective in reducing the requirement for postoperative opioids and provide a non-pharmacological alternative to perioperative opioid use. To establish the role that the stimulation of the nerves of the ear may have in reducing postoperative opioid requirement, the investigators are proposing to conduct a randomized, placebo controlled study in patients undergoing open abdominal or pelvic surgery requiring at least 5 days of hospitalization. Subjects who have signed an informed consent will be randomized in 2 groups (active NBD® group or inactive NBD® group). Furthermore, since preoperative and postoperative mood disorders have been shown to increase postoperative pain levels and opioid requirement by up to 50%, the investigators further hypothesize that the stimulation of the ear nerves by the NSS-2 BRIDGE® effects may be in part mediated by a reduction of the level of anxiety, depression and catastrophizing as assessed using validated questionnaires. Read Less

Abdominal pain in chronic pancreatitis (CP) affects up to 90% of patients during the course of their disease, and response to currently available therapies is suboptimal and unpredictable. The proposed clinical trial will evaluate the predictive capability of Pancreatic Quantitative Sensory Testing (P-QST) - a novel assessment of neurosensory phenotyping- for improvement in pain in patients with CP who are undergoing medically-indicated invasive treatment with endoscopic therapy or surgery. 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 main goal of this clinical trial is to learn if light therapy improves pain and inflammation in adults with painful rib fractures. The main question it aims to answer is: - Does bright blue light therapy in addition to standard pain treatments improve pain with breathing in adults with painful rib fractures? Researchers will compare participants who receive bright blue light therapy to participants who receive white light therapy and participants who receive only usual lighting conditions to look for differences in their pain control. In addition to their assigned light treatment, all participants will receive standard pain control treatments. Participants will be assigned randomly to one of three groups: one-third will be assigned to bright blue light therapy, one-third will be assigned to bright white light therapy, and one-third will be assigned to usual light only. They will receive their assigned light treatment for 4 hours during the morning/early afternoon for up to 3 days while they are in the hospital. On each day they receive the light treatment and on the day after their final light treatment: * They will be asked twice to rate their pain at rest and with taking a deep breath. * They will be tested to confirm that they are not experiencing delirium, or confusion related to being in the hospital. * They will be asked to wear a heart monitor to look for changes in their heart rate. * Blood samples will be collected to look for changes in inflammation and the circadian clock, the body's natural 24-hour cycle. Read Less

The goal of this observational study is to develop and validate a biomarker for lumbar myofascial pain (MP) based on ultrasound obtained measurements of the lumbar muscles and fascia. The investigators will use advanced machine learning approaches and validation in a randomized controlled trial. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Will the deep learning-based marker reliably identify subjects from the 4 different groups: healthy, MP without trigger points, MP with latent trigger points, and MP with active trigger points? * Will the deep learning-based marker accurately classify/predict the severity of MP in subjects with cLBP? Participants in the healthy group will be asked to do the following tasks: * Consent/Enrollment * Measure Height/Weight * Complete Questionnaires on REDCap * Participate in Ultrasound Imaging Experiment Sessions Participants in the chronic low back pain group will be asked to do the following tasks: * Consent/Enrollment * Complete Questionnaires on REDCap * Measure Height/Weight * Undergo a Standardized Clinical Exam * Participate in Ultrasound Imaging Experiment Sessions 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 research study is to determine if the effectiveness of a single injection of CTM Boost in the treatment of patients with rotator cuff tendinopathy (RCT) is as effective as a single injection of platelet rich plasma (PRP) in reducing the symptoms of RCT. Read Less