Brain scans may unlock secrets of Long-Lasting Post-Surgery pain
NCT ID NCT05304286
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study is investigating why some people continue to have pain long after surgery. Researchers will use brain scans and questionnaires to understand the mechanisms behind chronic post-surgical pain in 110 adolescents and adults. The goal is to improve how doctors choose treatments for individual patients.
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 successful, this research could help doctors choose better treatments for chronic pain after surgery, tailored to each patient.
- What could go wrong
- This is an observational study, not a treatment trial. It aims to understand pain, not cure it, and results may not lead to immediate changes in care.
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 110 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Apr 2022
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2026
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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12 years and older
- 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: --Females and males aged 12 and older who have previously undergone surgery at least 6 months ago and have chronic post surgical pain (3 months after surgery or longer) Exclusion Criteria: * Inability to speak sufficient English or another language that can be interpreted orally and for questionnaires with the research team * Severe cognitive impairment by history (e.g., intellectual disability, severe head injury) * Patients with significant psychiatric disorders * Use of illegal hard drugs including MDMA, heroin, methamphetimes, amphetamines, cocaine, ketamine, benzodiazepines, and phencyclidine. Absence of such drugs will be confirmed in a urine drug screen during the visit. If prescription medication includes any of these compounds, that medication is not exclusionary.
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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
RECRUITINGBoston, Massachusetts, 02114, United States
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