Talking away the pain: new therapy targets fear of facial pain
NCT ID NCT07123233
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests a type of talk therapy called Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT) for people with chronic face pain that has no clear physical cause. The goal is to see if changing how the brain processes pain can lower pain intensity and improve quality of life. Sixty adults will be randomly assigned to either PRT or standard care, and followed for a year.
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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 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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May 2028
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 70 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of Chronic Primary Orofacial Pain (CPOP) according to ICD-11 criteria. * Patient-reported pain rating of 4 or higher out of 10 on the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) question assessing average pain over the past week, consistent with inclusion criteria from previous chronic pain studies. * Written informed consent. * Age 18 years or older. Exclusion Criteria: * Age over 70 years. * Current use of immunosuppressive medications (e.g., steroids). * History of cancer (breast, thyroid, prostate, blood cancers, etc.). * History of stroke, neurosurgical interventions, or brain tumors. * History of specific inflammatory diseases (lupus, scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, polymyalgia rheumatica). * History of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, personality disorders, dissociative identity disorder, or other severe psychoses. * Unexpected or unintentional weight loss of 10 kg or more in the year prior to recruitment. * Difficulty participating due to logistical problems. * Contraindications to undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). * Psychotherapy treatment of any kind within 15 months prior to the assessment date.
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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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Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta
RECRUITINGMilan, 20133, Italy
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