Active clinical trials for "Neuralgia"

Neurodynamics, i.e., the mobilization of the peripheral nervous system, is a physical approach to the treatment of pain; the method relies on influencing pain physiology via mechanical treatment of neural tissues and the non-neural structures surrounding the nervous system. Neural mobilization (NM) is used to treat various disorders of the nervous system concerning the length and mobility of peripheral nerves, as the nerve mobilizing refers to techniques that help to reestablish motion between a nerve and its surrounding soft tissues, thus to treat the nerves that have become entangled within the soft tissue, as it leads to tension release on a nerve by stretching and pulling one end of the nerve during keeping the other end in a relaxed state.

Neuropathic pain (NP) is one type of refractory chronic pain condition,medical treatments for NP is limited because of its poorly response. A noninvasive brain-stimulation method called transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has garnered interest as an alternative treatment for intractable NP potentially through inducing therapeutic brain plasticity.Indeed, high-frequency (≥ 5 Hz) Repetitive TMS (rTMS) over the primary motor cortex (M1) is suggested to be able to reduce neuropathic pain in randomized controlled studies.Overall, the clinical application of rTMS in chronic pain is still limited by the response rate,the investigation of rTMS protocols is important for improving rTMS analgesia. Theta burst stimulation (TBS) mimics the bursts of neuronal firing which results in robust long-term potentiation. Continuous TBS (cTBS) is designed to decrease excitability, whereby prolonged cTBS (pcTBS, i.e. multiple cTBS being delivered continuously) has recently been demonstrated to increase excitability. More importantly, pcTBS was found to have comparable or even better analgesic effects than standard 10 Hz rTMS. These findings together call for more studies to validate the analgesic efficacy of pcTBS. In this study, the investigators aim to assess and compare the efficacy of prolonged continuous theta burst stimulation (pcTBS) with 10HZ rTMS in NP patients.

Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) affects a person's ability to move and feel sensation in the body. SCI is also an indirect cause of a persistent pain, called Central Neuropathic Pain (CNP). This pain typically develops several months after the injury. In 30-40% of SCI patients, severe CNP affects their everyday living including sleep and mood. Many patients give up work, not because of the injury, but because of pain. Medical treatment of CNP is moderately effective and costly, both to the patient and to the health care system. In previous research, characteristic 'signatures' of brain waves that are probably related to CNP have been defined. Based on this, a novel treatment for CNP based on neurofeedback was developed and clinically tested on five SCI patients. Electroencephalograph (EEG) was used to record patients' brain waves and these were shown to patients on a computer screen in a simple graphical form (e.g. bars). Patients were trained to change their brain activity at will and, as a consequence, their pain was reduced. Patients who had suffered from CNP for years received up to 40 neurofeedback treatment sessions, reducing their pain for several days after each session. The primary aim of this study is to apply neurofeedback therapy to a larger number of recently injured patients, who are still in a hospital. It is hypothesised that neurofeedback treatment will be more effective in people who have suffered from CNP for a shorter period of time. The secondary aim of the study is to define EEG predictors of CNP. EEG will be recorded in recently injured patients with no chronic pain, knowing that a certain number of patients will develop CNP within weeks or months. These patients will be followed up for a year and the EEGs of patients who develop CNP will be compared with those who do not.

This randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind 4x4 crossover clinical trial was part of a larger NIH-funded study to evaluate the analgesic efficacy of multiple dose-combinations of chronic oral (PO) dextromethorphan and intravenous (IV) lidocaine in central neuropathic pain following spinal cord injury.

The purpose of these study is to compare the effectivity of the Cervical Lateral Glide physical therapy neural mobilization technique to the complete absence of treatment in a group of patients who suffer cervicobrachial pain.

Chronic axial low back pain is a public health problem and has a high socioeconomic impact. The dorsal ganglion of the second spinal nerve (GDL2) is a cluster of neuronal bodies responsible for sensory afferent inputs from more than 80% of the lumbar region. Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) is proven effective to help relieve pain. Thus, the aim of this project is to determine the effect of LLLT on GDL2 when applied to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of chronic axial low back pain. Methodology: 45 patients will be randomized into three groups: laser, radiofrequency and local anesthetic. The patient will be positioned in a prone horizontal position under anesthetic monitoring. The intervertebral foramen between the second and third lumbar vertebrae will be accessed by percutaneous puncture guided by fluoroscopy. In the local anesthetic group, injection of 1 ml lidocaine without vasoconstrictor will be applied in the tubes G20, 150 mm long and 5 mm active tip in contact with the target. In the radiofrequency group, neuromodulation will be held for 300 seconds at 42oC. In the laser group, the laser Photon III® (DCM) will be applied through optic fiber crossing G18 cannulas, during 84 seconds. The pain score will be assessed by visual analog scale. Temperature will be measured and aspirate periganglionic sample, trans-operatively, to study Interleucins-1β and TNF-alpha assessed by ELISA and genetic evaluation trough RNA seek, RNA isolation and ATP quantification. The data will be evaluated for normality and subjected to appropriate statistical analysis, in order to seek representation, as same as the level of significance of the studied samples.

A prospective case control study to determine the effectiveness and longevity of 8% capsaicin patch(es) in treating neuropathic pain in persons with spinal cord injury. The investigators will study spinal cord injury patients at South Texas Veterans Health Care Systems Spinal Cord Injury inpatient unit and outpatient clinics.

Motor cortex stimulation (MCS) is a form of brain stimulation for patients with neuropathic pain not responsive to medication. An electrode is placed on the surface of the brain and connected to a programmable battery in the chest. The strength of stimulation can be individually adjusted by changing the voltage of stimulation. A too high voltage will produce side effects (e.g. seizures) while a too low voltage will not provide pain control. The aim of this study is to analyze the optimal stimulation parameters in patients already implanted with a motor cortex stimulation who have received good pain relief. The actual voltage may vary widely between patients but the investigators feel that there may be an "ideal" voltage if it is measured as a percentage of motor threshold (PMT). If motor threshold is the stimulation voltage that can evoke a muscle contraction then a PMT = 80% would be a voltage that was eighty percent of that value. Although the actual voltage may be widely different between patients, the percentage needed may be very similar. The investigators therefore plan to measure the effect of different percentages of PMT in patients already being treated with motor cortex stimulation. Systematic analysis of the findings of this study might help the individual participant and future patients to better programming and less side effects.

This study aims to verify if patients with nerve-related leg pain benefits from neurodynamic treatment over two weeks.

This study will test whether treatment with N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) is safe and decreases pain in patients with chronic neuropathic pain. The investigators hypothesize that NAC will be a useful adjunct to opioid treatment in chronic neuropathic pain.