Could common nerve pain drugs be quietly affecting the heart?
NCT ID NCT07755514
First seen Aug 10, 2026 · Last updated Aug 11, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study is looking at whether two common nerve pain medications, gabapentin and pregabalin, might change inflammation levels or heart function in people with peripheral neuropathic pain. It will follow 75 adults—25 starting gabapentin, 25 starting pregabalin, and 25 healthy controls—for about a month. Researchers will measure inflammatory markers in leftover blood samples and use echocardiography to check heart function before and after treatment. The goal is to see if these drugs have any hidden effects on the body beyond pain relief.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Gabapentin and pregabalin, medications commonly used for nerve pain, are being observed for their effects on inflammation and heart function.
- What this could lead to
- If this study finds that these pain medications affect inflammation or heart function, it could lead to safer prescribing and better monitoring for patients with nerve pain.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small observational study, so results may not apply to everyone. It cannot prove cause and effect, and the short follow-up may miss long-term effects.
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.
- Participants
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About 75 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Aug 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Oct 2026
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.
Who is studied
The study population will consist of 75 adults recruited at a single center. The patient population will include adults with clinically diagnosed peripheral neuropathic pain who are prescribed gabapentin or pregabalin as part of routine clinical care. Eligible patients will be enrolled consecutively into the gabapentin cohort (n=25) or pregabalin cohort (n=25), according to the treatment selected by the treating physician independently of the study.The healthy control cohort will include 25 adults attending the cardiology outpatient clinic for a routine health examination or check-up who have no peripheral neuropathy, chronic neuropathic pain, current gabapentin or pregabalin use, or clinically significant cardiovascular disease. Healthy controls will be frequency matched to the patient cohorts, as feasible, by age, sex, and body mass index.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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: * Patient Cohorts:Age 18 years or older.A clinical diagnosis of peripheral neuropathic pain based on medical history, physical and neurological examination, and, when available, electrophysiological testing or imaging.A determination, following routine clinical evaluation, that initiation of gabapentin or pregabalin is clinically appropriate.Ability to complete baseline assessments before the first dose.Ability and willingness to provide written informed consent.Healthy Controls:Age 18 years or older.Attendance at the cardiology department for a routine health examination or check-up.No peripheral neuropathy, chronic neuropathic pain, gabapentin or pregabalin use, or clinically significant cardiovascular disease based on standard clinical screening.Eligibility, as far as possible, for frequency matching with the patient cohorts by age, sex, and body mass index.Ability and willingness to provide written informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: * Known or newly identified heart failure.2. Clinically significant valvular heart disease, cardiomyopathy, significant cardiac arrhythmia, previous acute coronary syndrome, or other significant structural heart disease.3. Active or recent acute infection.4. Active autoimmune or systemic inflammatory disease.5. Active malignancy.6. Recent major surgery, severe trauma, or acute cardiovascular event.7. Current systemic corticosteroid or immunosuppressive treatment.8. Advanced renal or hepatic dysfunction.9. Uncontrolled thyroid disease.10. Pregnancy or breastfeeding.11. Any acute clinical condition likely to substantially affect baseline biomarker measurements.12. Current use of gabapentin or pregabalin at baseline.13. Inability to complete baseline measurements before the first dose of gabapentin or pregabalin.14. Any other condition that, in the investigator's judgment, would prevent safe or appropriate participation in the study
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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 official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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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.
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