Could a simple ear device ease fibromyalgia pain?
NCT ID NCT04777500
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether a safe electrical stimulation device placed on the ear (taVNS) can relieve chronic pain in people with fibromyalgia. Sixty participants will use the device twice daily for four weeks. Researchers will measure changes in pain, mood, and daily function to see if this approach helps.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) device
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a non-drug, at-home option to reduce chronic pain and improve daily function for people with fibromyalgia.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with no control group comparison yet. The device may not provide meaningful pain relief, and results may not apply to everyone with fibromyalgia.
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.
- Expected to start
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Oct 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Mar 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 65 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: * Meet the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 1990 classification criteria and the ACR 2010 diagnostic criteria for fibromyalgia as determined by clinicians. * Willingness to complete a 4-week, twice-a-day treatments. * At least a 10th grade English-reading level; English can be a second language provided that the patients understand all questions used in the assessment measures. Exclusion Criteria: * Diagnosed with medical conditions that are known to contribute to fibromyalgia symptomatology, such as thyroid disease, inflammatory arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, myositis, vasculitis, or Sjogren's syndrome. * History of cardiac, respiratory, or nervous system disease that, in the investigator's judgment, precludes participation in the study because of a heightened potential for adverse outcome. For example: asthma or claustrophobia. * Personal history of medical or psychiatric illness as determined by investigator. * Pregnant or lactating. * Less than a 10th grade English-reading level; English can be a second language provided that the patients understand all questions used in the assessment measures.
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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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Massachusetts General Hospital
Charlestown, Massachusetts, 02129-2020, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Can a Hands-On nerve technique ease Fibromyalgia's grip?
- Why some days hurt more: charting Fibromyalgia's daily swings
- Zapping the vagus nerve: a new hope for fibromyalgia pain?