Desk job pain? quick workouts and massage at the office might help
NCT ID NCT07251959
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jul 22, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This study tests whether doing short exercise sessions plus hands-on therapy (like massage) at work can reduce pain and boost productivity in office workers with chronic back or neck pain. Sixty participants will be split into two groups: one gets real manual therapy plus exercise, the other gets a sham (fake) manual therapy plus exercise. The goal is to see if adding real manual therapy makes a difference in pain, disability, and work performance over 8 weeks.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- exercise therapy and manual therapy
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could provide a practical, workplace-based treatment option to reduce pain and improve work productivity for office workers with chronic back or neck pain.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 60 participants, and the added benefit of manual therapy over exercise alone is still uncertain. Results may not apply to all office workers or other settings.
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
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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
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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Sep 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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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
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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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 Hide 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: * Administrative professionals engaged in sedentary desk-based work utilizing visual display terminals (VDTs) for data processing and information management from the UCAM University * Chronic nonspecific spinal pain defined as pain (≥4/10 on a numeric rating scale) persisting for at least the past 3 months and/or present on ≥50% of days during the previous 6 months * The anatomical region of pain is defined from the occipital area to the gluteal folds Exclusion Criteria: * Participants with diagnosed conditions causing back pain, such as ankylosing spondylitis, infections, or other specific causes, including vertebral fractures * Participants currently receiving any rehabilitative or pharmacological treatment for back pain during the 3 weeks prior to study enrollment * Participants diagnosed with medical conditions that would prevent them from safely performing therapeutic exercise without medical supervision * Participants who answer "Yes" to one or more questions on the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire for Everyone (PAR-Q+), indicating potential contraindications to physical activity, unless cleared by a healthcare provider
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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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
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Catholic University of Murcia
Murcia, Murcia, 30107, Spain
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