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Sound waves aimed at the brain could quiet chronic pain

NCT ID NCT06906211

Symptom relief Sponsor: Washington D.C. Veterans Affairs Medical Center Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Aug 25, 2026 · Last updated Aug 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tests whether low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) can temporarily change activity in a brain area called the insula, which is involved in chronic pain. Veterans with chronic back pain and widespread pain symptoms will receive either real or sham LIFU to see if it reduces pain intensity and changes how the brain responds to heat and other pain triggers. The goal is to learn whether this non-invasive technique could offer a new way to manage chronic pain.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU), a non-invasive device that uses sound waves to temporarily change brain activity
What this could lead to
If it works, this could point toward a new non-invasive way to treat chronic back pain by calming the brain's pain response.
What could go wrong
This is an early-stage study with a small number of participants, so results may not apply broadly. The effect is temporary, and the approach may not lead to lasting pain relief.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 66 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Jan 2025

Expected to finish

Jan 2028

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

A government agency

The lead sponsor is a US federal agency other than the NIH.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

21 to 75 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Veterans aged 21 to 75 with Chronic Back Pain (CBP). * CBP duration daily for last 3 months or half of days for last 6 months * Endorse pain rating of 4/10 BPI-SF * Evidence of widespread pain symptoms as determined by report of CBP and pain in a contralateral limb (pain in the upper, lower, left or right side of the body) in fewer than 11 sites. Upper body sites include hand, wrist, elbow or shoulder. Lower sites include hip, knee, ankle or foot. Exclusion Criteria: * Surgery recommended as primary treatment intervention for CBP * Current diagnosis of fibromyalgia * Current substance use disorder other than nicotine. * Psychiatric disorder and not on a stable pharmacologic regimen for ≥ 4 weeks prior to screening * Opiate use daily * Currently pregnant or breast feeding. * Unable to understand the consent form. * History of head injury with loss of consciousness for more than 5 minutes, seizures, history of stroke, brain surgery, brain tumor, multiple sclerosis. * History of metastatic cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, polymyalgia rheumatica, scleroderma, lupus, or polymyositis * Unintended weight loss of 20 pounds or more in the last year * Cauda equina syndrome * Ferromagnetic implants or other contraindications for MRI * Uncompensated congestive heart failure, unstable angina, poorly controlled arrhythmia, active systemic infection end stage renal disease.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Chronic Pain chronic pain syndrome

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Chronic back pain Chronic pain (back / neck)

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center

    RECRUITING

    Washington D.C., District of Columbia, 20422, United States

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