Treatment Trials

7 Clinical Trials for Various Conditions

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UNKNOWN
Trigger Point Injections in Anterior Cervical Surgery
Description

To achieve appropriate exposure for an anterior neck surgery (for example an Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion or ACDF), patients are positioned supine with their neck extended. Due to being in this position, patients frequently complain of posterior neck stiffness and pain postoperatively in addition to the anterior incisional pain. This posterior cervical pain can be classified as myofascial pain. Cervical myofascial pain is thought to be the result of overuse or trauma to the supporting muscles of the neck and shoulders. Trigger point injections are one of the methods used to treat myofascial pain. The trigger point injection procedure is where a physician (typically an anesthesiologist) performs an exam of the patient neck and upper back and finds areas of point tenderness. The physician will then inject a small amount of numbing medication (such as bupivacaine) into the muscle or tissue in that area. Trigger point injections have been shown to be superior to botox injections or dry needling, and equivalent to physical therapy. However, these studies were performed on patients with chronic neck pain. There are no studies evaluating the effectiveness of trigger point injections on post anterior cervical surgery patients. At our institution, trigger point injections with local anesthetic are used as part of a multimodal pain control regimen for post-anterior cervical surgery patients. Our hypothesis is if the addition of trigger point injections to standard of care multi-modal post-operative pain control will decrease patients' myofascial pain, and thereby decrease the amount of narcotic pain medication used.

COMPLETED
Topical Application of MyoRx (Omega 3 Fatty Acids Containing) Cream
Description

This study is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of topical application of omega-3 fatty acids (6% by volume) containing cream on persons with a TMD disorder, specifically with a diagnosis of Myofacial Pain. Omega-3 fatty acids have minimal side effects when applied topically. If Omega-3 fatty acids used in this study are shown to reduce myofacial pain then this formulation could potentially be used for treatment of TMD patents with myofacial pain in the future. Omega-3 fatty acids are natural ingredients with almost no side effects. Topical application can lead to fewer side effects than systemic medications. In addition, there is no substantial morbidity \& mortality associated with topical application of Omega-3 fatty acids. It is hypothesized that subjects receiving topical application of omega-3 fatty acids will demonstrate reduced subjective masseter muscle pain in comparison to subjects receiving placebo cream. This is a pilot study to assess the topical application of Omega-3 fatty acids on muscle pain in the muscles of mastication.

Conditions
UNKNOWN
Trigger Point Injections Versus Lidocaine Patch for Myofascial Pain in the Emergency Department
Description

The aim of this trial is to investigate the efficacy of trigger point injections with 1% lidocaine in reducing myofascial back and neck pain in the Emergency Department compared to lidocaine patches 5%.

COMPLETED
Comparison of Cannabinoids to Placebo in Management of TMJ Pain and Myofascial Pain in the TMJ Region
Description

The aim of this study is to determine whether the cannabinoids taken orally in the form of cannabidiol (CBD oil-a major non-psychoactive component of marijuana) vs placebo (hemp oil) will provide pain relief and improved jaw function in those who suffer from either myofascial pain disorder and/or arthralgia of the temporomandibular region. 1. Primary Objectives To determine if the consumption of CBD oil is superior to placebo for the improvement in jaw pain. 2. Secondary Objectives To determine if the consumption of CBD oil is superior to placebo for the improvement in function of the temporomandibular joint. 3. Exploratory Objectives To determine if there are any adverse effects that result from the consumption of CBD oil or placebo.

COMPLETED
Peer Mentorship: An Intervention To Promote Effective Pain Self-Management In Adolescents
Description

This protocol matches child subjects with peer mentors of similar age who have learned to function successfully with a chronic pain disorder. The trained mentors will present information to the subjects in a supervised and monitored interaction via telephone and computer for 2 months and encourage participation in skill-building programs. Children will be tested for improvement in pain and functioning at 2 months and again at 4 months to see if improvements persist. The investigators hypothesize that children who received peer mentor support will show more improvement in pain and functioning at 2 and 4 months into treatment than those in a control group who do not receive mentor support.

COMPLETED
Characterization of Skeletal Muscle Using Magnetic Resonance Elastography (MRE)
Description

The goal of this proposal is two-fold: (1) to further develop and validate a technology, magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), for quantitatively imaging mechanical properties and tension distribution in muscle and (2) to apply the technique for in vivo evaluation of patients with four common, and clinically significant muscle disorders (spasticity, disuse atrophy, myofascial pain and a metabolic myopathy). These studies will employ a magnetic resonance imaging sequence with synchronous motion-sensitizing gradients to map propagating shear waves in the muscle. The technique will assess the mechanical properties of the muscle and its tension distribution. Specifically, the study can be divided into three specific aims. Aim 1: Optimize MRE methods of acquisition and analysis for the assessment of muscle, including electromechanical drivers, data acquisition techniques, and methods for image analysis. Advanced techniques for very rapid MRE assessment of muscle will continue to be developed. Aim 2: Validate the MRE assessment of muscle properties and tension with phantom, ex-vivo muscle, and Finite Element Modeling (FEM) techniques. Finite Element Analysis will be performed by using both phantom and bovine muscles to better correlate MRE wave-length findings as function of muscle properties, tension and fiber architecture. Aim 3: Study In Vivo Normal and Abnormal Muscle. The MRE technique will be applied in vivo to provide elastographic images of abnormal muscle with known disorders. The patient groups chosen for study are each important in their own right, and furnish unique information across the spectrum of muscular disease and dysfunction. Groups to be studied include individuals with new onset of spasticity following an ischemic, hemispheric stroke, disuse atrophy as a result of immobilization, metabolic (hyperthyroid) myopathy and myofascial pain for trigger point identification. The overall hypothesis of this work is that will bring benefits to both basic research and clinical care.

RECRUITING
Effects of Myofascial Massage and Patient-therapist Communication Levels on Shoulder Muscle Properties in Breast Cancer Survivors with Myofascial Pain
Description

The objective of the proposed study is to assess how myofascial massage alters stiffness and microvascular perfusion of shoulder muscles and how these changes are influenced by patient-therapist interactions. The primary hypothesis is that stiffness of shoulder muscles will be decreased, and microvascular perfusion will be increased after a 30-minute myofascial massage, and that the addition of patient-therapist communication levels will result in greater changes with certain levels.

Conditions