Could turning nerve stimulation on and off beat continuous therapy for chronic pain?
NCT ID NCT04909138
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looks at whether using a nerve stimulator in short bursts (30 seconds on, 90 seconds off) can provide the same or better pain relief as continuous stimulation. It involves 30 adults who have had a dorsal root ganglion stimulator for at least a year and report at least 50% pain relief. Participants will try two different stimulation frequencies (20 Hz and 5 Hz) in a crossover design to see which works best.
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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 30 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2022
- 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 to 90 years
- 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: * Age between 18 and 99 * 1-year or more use of continuous DRG therapy as delivered a permanently implanted Abbott PROCLAIM XR Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurostimulator System for chronic back and/or leg pain * Endorse at least 50% pain relief in the targeted area over the last year * Must have been seen for routine follow-up within last 4 months * Must have been reprogrammed in standard fashion at least once prior to randomization * Willing and able to complete protocol requirements, including: * Complete health questionnaires and pain scales as specified in the protocol * Sign the study-specific informed consent form * Complete follow-ups at the designated time periods Exclusion Criteria: * Significant lead migration, as determined by clinician * Other concurrent neuromodulation system in place * Corticosteroid injection in previous 30 days prior to enrollment * Intermittent dosing and/or failure within last 6m * Changing or unstable pain medications within 30 days
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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
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.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Rush University Medical Center
RECRUITINGChicago, Illinois, 60612, United States
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