Active clinical trials for "Low Back Pain"

This clinical pilot trial will investigate the effects of technology-supported exercise therapy for chronic non-specific low back pain. Patients will follow an intensive rehabilitation program (2x/week for 18 weeks), with emphasis on motor control training that is supported by technology. The technological system consists out of motion tracking sensors that register the movements and position of the lumbar spine.

Introduction: Non-specific chronic low back pain (CLBP) is one of the most frequent causes for patient disability and a general recurrent cause for medical consultation with high costs to public health. From rehabilitative medicine, physiotherapy is commonly offered. Although this treatment is aimed to reduce disability, pain severity and pain-related anxiety-depressive symptoms, many patients report partial improvement and recurrent intensive and disabling pain episodes. Therefore, a new approach in the treatment and rehabilitation of this pathology that takes into account psychosocial aspects that might be modulating pain is necessary. Material and methods: This project aims to assess the efficacy of two complementary interventions to standard physical therapy, such as relaxation techniques and cognitive-behavioral intervention, to improve health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among patients with CLBP. It is hypothesized that groups receiving these complementary interventions will significantly improve their adherence to physiotherapy and the control of their pain and, ultimately, these aspects will facilitate a decreasing of pain intensity and better HRQoL. For these purposes, a pre-post longitudinal design will be carried out, with follow-up assessments at 6 and 12 months in a sample of 66 participants. This sample will be divided into: control group (physiotherapy), intervention group 1 (physiotherapy and relaxation techniques-sophrology) and intervention group 2 (physiotherapy and cognitive-behavioral intervention). Expected impact: Study results are not available yet. However, if working hypotheses are confirmed, a multidisciplinary model of care for CLBP will be empirically justified. This approach is expected to benefit HRQoL among these patients implying a significant short-mid term reduction of public health costs.

Low back pain (LBP) is one of the most common reasons for seeking medical care and accounts for over 3.7 million physician visits/year in the U.S. alone. Ninety percent of adults will experience low back pain in their lifetime, 50% will experience recurrent LBP, and 10% will develop chronic pain and related disability. While there is growing evidence for the clinical effectiveness of alternative and complementary therapies to treat low back pain, little is known on the physiologic consequences and effects of these treatments. Further, additional data is needed to understand how these different treatment techniques effect clinical changes in pain and disability. The lack of empirical data hinders acceptance by the wider scientific and health-care communities, and it also limits the development of rational strategies for using alternative and complementary therapies.

Activation of the sympathetic nervous system attenuates inflammation via catecholamines, recent advances in electroacupuncture allow activating critical neuronal networks with the release of catecholamines the aim of this research was to evaluate de effect of electroacupuncture in the activation of sympathetic nervous system and the control of low back pain in athletes

Chronic pain is a severe disabling problem within society, affecting 25-30% of the United States population.. Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has the potential to provide a treatment option that is safe, scientifically-supported, low-cost, and easy-to-administer method to effectively reduce symptoms in patients suffering from chronic pain. The purpose of this study is to test the feasibility of using tACS to treat patients with chronic pain, and to collect pilot efficacy as well as EEG and EKG biomarker data for optimizing the design of subsequent large-scale studies. The treatment rationale is to renormalize the presumed pathological structure of alpha oscillations in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of patients with chronic pain.

The primary objectives of this pilot trial are to evaluate the feasibility, safety and acceptability of an integrative care pathway that includes chiropractic care, for the coordinated care for Veterans Administration (VA) patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP), with an emphasis on those with mental health comorbidity, in preparation for the conduct of an appropriately powered multi-site randomized controlled trial (RCT). The secondary objectives are to collect study outcomes at the baseline visit (BV) and at weeks 3, 5, 7, and 10 to: 1) assess the success of collecting outcomes; 2) determine the outcome measures to use in a future RCT; and 3) determine preliminary intervention effect sizes and variability to aid in sample size determination for a future RCT. The investigators hypothesize that chiropractic care offers relief for pain and mental health symptoms through the direct effects of treatment-focused CMT, as well as through the indirect, non-specific effects of the team-based relationship with the clinician. This pilot study is a single-arm trial. All participants will be asked to complete study outcomes which include the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), LBP intensity and interference as measured by the Defense and Veterans Pain Rating Scale (DVPRS), as well as the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item Scale (GAD-7), Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian Version (PLC-C), self-care behaviors, Keele Start Back Screening Tool (STarT Back), Healing Encounters and Attitudes Lists (HEAL), Expectations for Complementary and Integrative Treatments Questionnaire (EXPECT), and Pain Intensity, Enjoyment of Life, General Activity Assessment Tool (PEG) questionnaires, and the Pain Assessment Screening Tool and Outcomes Registry (PASTOR) assessment, which includes measures of pain, disability, mental health, quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction. All participants will receive up to 10 weeks of chiropractic care and will complete outcome assessments at weeks 3, 5, 7, and 10 of the study.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether experimentally induced acute low back pain might lead to alteration in lumbar tactile acuity measured in region affected by pain compared to pain-free side and pain-free controls.

Chronic low back leads to a significant socio-economic burden. It is associated with physical and psychosocial deconditioning. Even a short "nature experience" has positive effects on the affective and cognitive factors involved in chronic pain. In the brain, the anterior cingulate cortex plays an important role in both pain and emotions. Exposure to a natural environment may decrease activation of the anterior cingulate cortex. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of therapeutic horticulture on the decrease of activation of the anterior cingulate cortex in people with chronic low back pain participating in 2 sessions of 90 minutes of therapeutic horticulture and 2 sessions of 90 minutes of handiwork. The investigators hypothesize that therapeutic horticulture may reduce the activation of the anterior cingulate cortex. The effects of therapeutic horticulture may be mediated through the double exposure to both nature and physical activity.

A randomized control trial is planned to investigate the effectiveness of Cat-Cow yoga as a treatment for chronic low back pain CLBP. An 12 weeks course of intervention will be provided to the candidates that will meet the eligibility criteria of the study. Substance P, beta endorphins and cortisol will be tested both the groups' pre and post treatment and then the difference from the baseline value will be determined.

Veterans who have responded well to Battlefield Acupuncture (BFA), a form of auricular acupuncture, in routine clinical practice will be invited to receive education to insert the needles themselves at home. A 3D-printed wearable prosthetic will also be explored as a means to facilitate needle placement. Primary end-points will include whether adverse events occur over a six-month period and whether the aforementioned prosthesis significantly facilitates needle placement in terms of subjective ease of administration.