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Can the Body's stress wiring explain why pain spreads and lingers?

NCT ID NCT06892977

NEW Knowledge-focused Sponsor: University Ghent Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only This study
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Sep 21, 2026 · Last updated Sep 21, 2026

Summary

Researchers at Ghent University are studying how the body's stress systems relate to musculoskeletal pain such as fibromyalgia and low back pain. They compare adults with subacute or chronic pain, both localized and widespread, against pain-free volunteers. Participants complete questionnaires, give hair and saliva samples for stress hormones, undergo brain MRI scans, and take part in stress-inducing tasks and pain sensitivity tests. A second session six months later checks whether stress system patterns connect to how pain changes over time.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

What this could lead to
If stress system patterns track with how pain spreads or lingers, this could point toward stress-focused ways to help people with fibromyalgia or low back pain.
What could go wrong
This is an observational study, so it can show links between stress and pain but cannot prove that stress causes pain or that changing stress would ease it. Findings from 140 adults may not apply to everyone.

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

About 140 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Feb 2025

Expected to finish

Dec 2026

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

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

Study population is a community sample.

Ages

18 to 55 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show 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: • Participants aged 18 to 55 years with a BMI between 17 and 35 kg/m², who are proficient in the Dutch language and do not meet the exclusion criteria listed below Exclusion Criteria: * Body weight \>150 kg (maximum weight for the MRI scanner). * Postmenopausal individuals. * Use of hormone replacement therapy. * Current or history of severe psychiatric, neurological (related to the brain, spinal cord, or nerves), endocrine (related to the hormonal system), or cardiovascular (related to the heart and blood vessels) conditions (e.g., cancer, cardiovascular disease, epilepsy, diabetes, etc.). * History of spinal surgery, spinal trauma, severe spinal deformities, or neurogenic back pain. * Having a severe communicative or cognitive disorder. * Use of medication that is not stable for at least 1 month prior to the test session. * Regular drug use (≥1 time per week). * Contraindications for MRI (such as claustrophobia, implanted electronic devices like a pacemaker, metal splinters in the body, etc.). * Currently pregnant or have been pregnant in the past year. * Breastfeeding.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Chronic Pain fibromyalgia Low Back Pain Musculoskeletal Pain

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Chronic low back pain Fibromyalgia Subacute low back pain

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. 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.

    Open the record ↗

  3. 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

  • Ghent University, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences

    Ghent, 9000, Belgium

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