Ancient QiGong movement may rewire the brain to quiet chronic back pain
NCT ID NCT04164225
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study explores whether practicing QiGong—a gentle mind-body exercise—can help people with chronic low back pain by altering brain regions linked to body awareness. Sixty adults with ongoing back pain will either follow a 12-week QiGong program or do low-impact core exercises. Researchers will measure changes in pain intensity, body awareness, and mindfulness using questionnaires and brain scans.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Qigong exercise
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a non-drug, mind-body approach for managing chronic low back pain.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small early study (60 people) comparing QiGong to another exercise. Results may not apply to everyone, and benefits may be modest.
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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Jan 2020
- Expected to finish
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Jun 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: \- Adults with chronic low back pain Exclusion Criteria: * Those with cognitive problems * Those unable to speak or understand instructions * Those who have nerve problems, fractures, or infections * Those who do not speak English * Those with severe deficit in motor imagery or in vision (both are used in MRI tasks)
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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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Children's Rehabilitation Center, 426 Church Street SE Room 302 - Brain Body Mind Lab Minneapolis, MN 55455
RECRUITINGMinneapolis, Minnesota, 55455, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Radiofrequency device tested as Add-On for stubborn back pain
- Back muscles hold clues for treating recurrent low back pain
- Skip the GP? physiotherapy first for back pain put to the test
- Can yoga ease back pain when recovery looks unlikely?
- Can a second injection target the source of stubborn back pain?
- Can releasing a deep back muscle ease pain and help you breathe better?