Can a VR headset ease pancreatitis pain?
NCT ID NCT06362187
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Aug 06, 2026 · Updated 4 times
Summary
This study tests whether using a virtual reality headset at home can help adults with chronic pancreatitis manage their pain. Twenty participants will use either a gut-directed VR therapy or a distraction-based VR for 8 weeks. The main goal is to see if people can stick with the program, and secondarily whether it improves pain and quality of life.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Gut-directed virtual reality cognitive behavioral therapy (VR CBT) delivered via Oculus Quest 2 headset
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a non-drug, home-based option to help manage chronic pain from pancreatitis.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small feasibility study with only 20 people, so results may not apply widely. The VR therapy is experimental and may not reduce pain for 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.
- 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 20 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jul 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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May 2029
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 75 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 CP \[as determined by Cambridge 3-4 imaging classification (using CT, MRI, or MRCP) or a histologic diagnosis of CP\] * Clinically significant abdominal pain, measured using the standardized NIH PROMIS GI Pain Scale14 and defined as scoring at least 5 points above the nationally normed score (0.5 SD effect size), indicating equal or greater than the minimally clinically important difference (MCID) of abdominal pain * Are 18-75 years of age * Are able to read/write English. The study does not include non-English speakers as to current study material are only available in English. Exclusion Criteria: * Patients who are presenting with a condition that interferes with VR usage (e.g., seizures, facial injury precluding safe placement of headset, visual impairment) * Patients who have cognitive impairment that affects protocol participation * Patients who are recommended for long-term hospitalization * Patients who are estimated to live \<3 months from the time of enrollment * Patients who have been diagnosed with a pancreatic tumor * Patients who have been enrolled in an interventional/therapeutic drug trial for chronic or recurrent pancreatitis within the last 6 months
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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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Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, California, 90048, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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