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43 active trials for Pain Management

Acupuncture in the Emergency Department for Pain Management

Our goal is to use the U01 mechanism to conduct a two-arm multisite, feasibility RCT (Acupuncture vs Usual Care) to refine procedures for conducting a future fully powered multi-site RCT. The effort will be led by the BraveNet Coordinating Center at Einstein and include 3 BraveNet PBRN sites University Hospitals/ Case Western Reserve University (UH/Case), Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), and University of California-San Diego (UCSD). During Year 1 (Aim 1), we will develop the manualized acupuncture intervention with consensus from experts in the delivery of acupuncture for acute pain. At the end of Year 1 (prior to the start of the RCT), a study investigator meeting will be held to ensure consistent training of all study coordinators and acupuncturists to the study data collection, human subjects, intervention delivery, and reporting requirements. In Year 2-3 (Aim 2), we will enroll 165 participants (55 per site) into the randomized trial (1:1 assignment to Acupuncture or Usual Care) over a ~9-month enrollment period for each site. Sites will participate in the study sequentially, thus general findings from the implementation evaluation may be used to improve implementation at subsequent sites. Treatment outcomes include pain intensity, state anxiety and pain medication utilization within the ED (via EHR data extraction). In Aim 2a, 75 structured qualitative interviews of ED providers, staff, study acupuncturists (~10 per site) and acupuncture patients (~15 per site) and direct observation at each site will be used to identify barriers and facilitators of successful implementation. The Implementation Evaluation includes two broad categories of data: implementation outcomes (collected in Aim 2 as the feasibility study is conducted at each site) and explanatory factors (Aim 2a).

Start: May 2021
TENS for Testicular Pain (ICO): A Randomized Controlled Trial

Idiopathic Chronic Orchialgia (i.e., testicular pain) is a challenging condition to treat, with unresolved testicular pain leading to distress, diminished activities of daily living and decreased quality of life. Testicular Pain may be caused by a tumor, hernia, infection, trauma, vein compression, cysts, and/or postoperative or radiating pain, though is often times unknown. Non-pharmacologic, conservative pain reduction interventions include heat, ice, scrotal support, physical therapy, and/or counseling, and should often be used as first line of defense. More aggressive, invasive, and non-conservative medical treatment options include medications, nerve blocks, and/or surgery, each of which may be effective, but may be invasive and/or cause serious side effects. However, there is no standard of care for managing the testicular pain and many men do not respond to current biomedical or nonpharmacologic treatment options. Novel, non-invasive treatment options are needed for ICO to improve distress, daily living activities, and quality of life. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a non-pharmacologic intervention for acute and chronic pain. This treatment involves the application of electric current through the skin; it is safe, easy to use, and inexpensive. Despite the impact and distress associated with Testicular Pain, only one known study examined the efficacy of TENS for this condition. A 2018 double-blind, randomized controlled study of people with Testicular Pain reported that TENS improved pain and quality of life significantly more than the control condition (analgesia only). This 2018 study lacked a placebo control condition (i.e., unknown whether pain relief was due to the placebo effect, where knowing an intervention is happening leads to an expectation that pain will decrease, and therefore pain perception decreases independent of the intervention). Thus, the aim of this study is to examine the efficacy of TENS on Testicular Pain using a randomized, placebo-controlled design. The results of this study will be used to inform a larger, federally-funded study. i. Primary Aim: To assess the efficacy of TENS for Testicular Pain ii. Secondary Aim: To assess the feasibility of TENS for Testicular Pain iii. Third Aim: To assess the tolerability of TENS for Testicular Pain iii. To assess associations between dispositional pain catastrophizing on responsiveness to the TENS intervention.

Start: December 2020
Erector Spinae Plane (ESP) Block Volunteer Study

Although erector spinae plane (ESP) block reportedly provides postoperative pain relieve, controversy remains regarding the accuracy and consistency of analgesic success following ESP block. The goal of this study is to determine the extent and duration of clinical neural blockade following an ESP injection with different local anesthetic doses. Methods Twenty four healthy volunteers will be recruited, and each subject will make 2 separate visits to the study centre to undergo intervention and assessment. The 2 study visits will be separated by an interval of at least 2 weeks to ensure complete washout of any residual effects and a return to baseline status. At each study visit, the subject will receive a unilateral ESP block with 1.5% lidocaine and 5 mcg/mL epinephrine. Two different local anesthetic volumes will be investigated: 20 mL (300 mg lidocaine) at one study visit and 30 mL (450 mg lidocaine) at the other study visit. Volunteers will be randomized to one of two intervention groups: (1) Group 20/30: A unilateral ESP block with 20 mL of local anesthetic at the first visit, and 30 mL of local anesthetic at the second visit; or (2) Group 30/20: a unilateral ESP block with 30 mL of 1.5% lidocaine with 1/200,000 epinephrine at the first visit, and 20 mL of the same local anesthetic solution at the second visit. There will be 2 study subgroups based on the vertebral level at which the ESP block is administered: (1) Volunteer subjects in subgroup TP4 will receive the ESP block injection at the T4 transverse process (TP4) level in order to evaluate the anesthetic effect on the chest wall. (2) Volunteers in subgroup TP8 will receive the ESP block injection at the T8 transverse process (TP8) level in order to evaluate the anesthetic effect on the abdominal wall. The first 10 volunteer subjects recruited will receive ESP blocks at the TP4 level and the subsequent 10 subjects will receive ESP blocks at the TP8 level.

Start: January 2021