Can watching your own leg reflex teach the brain to turn down knee arthritis pain?

NCT ID NCT07832682

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Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting This study
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 Results may not be published yet.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)
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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

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Status unknown
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First seen Sep 22, 2026 · Last updated Sep 23, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers at Northeastern University are testing a neurofeedback training method for people with knee osteoarthritis. The training shows participants their own protective leg reflex on a screen in real time, with the goal of teaching them to reduce a reflex that is often overactive when the nervous system becomes more sensitive to pain. The study compares real neurofeedback with a placebo version in about 50 adults aged 45 and older. Participants attend one measurement visit and six training visits over several weeks, and researchers track safety, how many sessions people complete, and whether the training is acceptable.

What this could mean

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

Active substance
Neurofeedback training that shows people their own leg reflex in real time so they can learn to change it
What this could lead to
If it works, this could offer a drug-free way to turn down pain sensitization in knee osteoarthritis and point to similar training for other chronic pain conditions.
What could go wrong
This is an early, small feasibility study of 50 people, so it may show the training is safe and doable without proving it eases pain. The reflex changes may not translate into real symptom relief, and the sham comparison could show no difference.

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 50 people

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

Expected to start

Oct 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

Jul 2031

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

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

Ages

45 years and older

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: * Age 45 years or older * Symptomatic knee osteoarthritis meeting the clinical definition in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines: knee pain for more than 3 months and morning stiffness lasting less than 30 minutes * Able to speak and understand English * Able to attend all study visits at the study site in Boston, MA Exclusion Criteria: Stimulation safety * Pacemaker, implanted defibrillator, or other implanted electronic device * Metal implants in the head * Implants in the lower limb, including prior knee arthroplasty * History of seizures or epilepsy * Prior adverse reaction to transcranial magnetic stimulation * Frequent or severe headaches * Suspected or diagnosed cardiac disease * Pregnancy (self-reported) Neurological, psychiatric, and medical * Neurological disease, including multiple sclerosis * Currently active major depressive disorder, defined as a current clinical diagnosis of major depressive disorder or ongoing treatment for depression; a prior history that is neither active nor treated is not exclusionary * Insulin-dependent diabetes * Raynaud's phenomenon, cold urticaria, or other cold-induced reaction * Large ischaemic scars Pain and musculoskeletal * Lower extremity pain other than knee osteoarthritis Skin and sensation at stimulation sites * Altered skin sensation of the thigh * Swollen, infected, inflamed, or damaged skin of the thigh Substances * Use of medication known to alter pain perception or cortical excitability, including opioids, gabapentinoids, antidepressants (SSRIs, SNRIs, tricyclics), benzodiazepines, anti-seizure medications, muscle relaxants, prescription sleep medications, and cannabis or cannabinoids * Use of alcohol or recreational drugs within 12 hours before a study visit Radiographic confirmation is not required, consistent with current clinical recommendations for knee osteoarthritis diagnosis. Commonly used medications that do not alter pain perception or cortical excitability are permitted and recorded as covariates.

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Conditions

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