Brain Biomarker of Endogenous Analgesia in Patients With Chronic Knee Pain
CompletedNCT05003323
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This study has no listed site in Canada in this snapshot. It is included as part of the worldwide chronic pain corpus.
Brief summary (from the registry)
This case-control study in patients with knee osteoarthritis and pain-free control individuals aims to develop a brain biomarker of endogenous analgesia that may be used in subsequent clinical trials. Deficits in central nervous system (CNS) pain inhibition may contribute to chronic pain intensity, but quantitative sensory testing (QST) methods are limited. Incorporating brain imaging to assessments of CNS pain inhibition, by examining activity in relevant brain networks, would allow for an objective, physiologic measure of CNS pain inhibition. Preliminary data in pain-free volunteers implicate cortical activity measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) during CNS pain inhibition. Broadly, the investigators hypothesize that variability in CNS pain inhibition contributes to variability in clinical pain intensity.
Study details
- Official title
- Brain Biomarker of Endogenous Analgesia in Patients With Chronic Knee Pain
- Sponsor
- University of Pittsburgh
- Start date
- 2021-11-18
- Primary completion
- 2023-10-20
- Sex
- All
- Age range
- from 45 Years to 80 Years
- Healthy volunteers
- true
- Results posted
- No results posted in this snapshot
- Countries
- United States
- Total sites listed
- 1
Eligibility criteria
Show eligibility criteria (verbatim from the registry)
Inclusion Criteria: 1. For the knee arthritis groups: Chronic knee pain with evidence of knee osteoarthritis - radiographically grades 2-4 2. Age: 45-80 years old 3. Gender: Males and females will be recruited. 4. Language: only English-speaking subjects will be included. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Inflammatory arthritis (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis) 2. Inability to walk and climb stairs unassisted 3. History of knee replacement or open knee surgery 4. History of arthroscopic knee surgery within the last 3 months (\>3 months does not exclude participant) 5. History of knee radiofrequency nerve ablation or ligation 6. Current opioid use 7. Current use of antidepressants that are not in the serotonin-selective reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) class. Patients who are currently using an SSRI are allowed to take part in the study 8. Cognitive impairment affecting the ability to provide informed consent, understand directions, and participate in study procedures 9. Uncontrolled or unstable medical disorder preventing participation in study procedures 10. History of brain surgery 11. Tattoos on forearm or knee 12. Pregnancy 13. Patients with chronic pain conditions that are more severe than their knee arthritis pain (e.g., CRPS, fibromyalgia) 14. Patients whose most painful knee is excluded for another reason (e.g., recent surgery on most painful knee) 15. For the pain-free control group: a history of chronic pain 16. History of intra-articular steroid injections, platelet enriched or hyaluronic acid injections in the last 1 month
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov (US National Library of Medicine), snapshot October 2026. Check the registry for current recruiting status. Record: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05003323