Functional Neuroimaging in Fibromyalgia Patients Receiving tDCS

July 17, 2013 updated by: Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre

Study of the Brain With Optic Functional Neuroimaging in Patients With Chronic Pain Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation

The purpose of this study is to evaluate effectiveness and cerebral neuronal ability to adaptation in patients with fibromyalgia who receive pregabalin and transcranial direct current stimulation.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Unknown

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Fibromyalgia syndrome occurs in around 2% of the population (predominantly women), and is characterized by its poor response to conventional therapies. Therapeutic approaches modulating inhibitory pathways, including pharmacologic options as pregabalin, and non pharmacological ones as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) have been proven to be of limited utility independently. Aiming to evaluate a better understanding of the pathophysiogenic mechanisms and the effect of these treatments on neuroplasticity, this study was designed evaluating neurophysiologic, neurochemical and clinical parameters. Neurophysiologic parameters and functions to be assessed will include pain threshold, motor evoked potential, silent period, intracortical facilitation and inhibition assessed by Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and optic functional neuroimaging. Neurochemical measurements considered will be neurotrophins (BDNF) and inflammatory mediators (TNF, IL1, IL6, IL10 and cortisol). Clinical characteristics will be assessed using validated scales capable to detect functional capacity, quality of life (WHOCOHL), catastrophism, sleep disruptions (Pittsburgh) and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory). Considering the above described hypothesis, the present randomized clinical trial with blinded patients and evaluators is proposed. It pretends to analyze short-, mid- and long-term neurobiological mechanisms triggered by the selected interventions.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
34

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Wolnei Caumo, MD, PhD
  • Phone Number: 51 3359 8083
  • Email: caumo@cpovo.net

Study Locations

  • Brazil
    • Rio Grande do Sul
      • Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, 90035-903
        • Recruiting
        • Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre
        • Contact:
          • Wolnei Caumo, MD, PhD
          • Phone Number: (51) 3359 8083
          • Email: caumo@cpovo.net
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Wolnei Caumo, MD PhD

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • - Diagnosis of fibromyalgia according to the American College of Rheumatology criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Psychiatric or neurologic disorder that unable patient to consent and follow study protocol.
  • De-compensated systemic disease.
  • Chronic inflammatory disease (e.g. Systemic Lupus Erythematous, Rheumatoid Arthritis).

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Sham Comparator: Pregabalin, Sham tDCS
Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg oral (PO) twice per day (BID), and sham transcranial direct current stimulation (sham tDCS) five times per week during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. The sham tDCS consists of the same montage of the active tDCS, but the device is turned off 30 seconds after initiating stimulation (without letting the patient notice it). Rest of the montage is kept identical as the active one during the 30 minutes that the session lasts.
Drug: Pregabalin
Pregabalin 150 mg per oral BID (i.e. twice per day).
Other Names:
  • Lyrica
Other: Sham Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
The sham tDCS consists of the same montage of the active tDCS, but the device is turned off 30 seconds after initiating stimulation (without letting the patient notice it). Rest of the montage is kept identical as the active one during the 30 minutes that the session lasts.
Other Names:
  • Sham tDCS
Experimental: Pregabalin, tDCS
Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg oral(PO) twice per day (BID), and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) five times per week during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. The tDCS consists of application of low intensity direct current (2 mA), with the anode placed in the dominant motor cortex (M1) and the cathode in the ipsilateral supraorbital region during 30 minutes each session, using sponge electrodes soaked with normal saline solution.
Drug: Pregabalin
Pregabalin 150 mg per oral BID (i.e. twice per day).
Other Names:
  • Lyrica
Other: Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
The tDCS consists of application of low intensity direct current (2 mA), with the anode placed in the dominant motor cortex (M1) and the cathode in the ipsilateral supraorbital region during 30 minutes each session, using sponge electrodes soaked with normal saline solution.
Other Names:
  • tDCS

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in the pressure pain threshold.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Assessed with pressure algometer. Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Pain thresholds will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Change in cortical excitability parameters assessed by transcranial magnetic stimulation.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Cortical Excitability will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Changes in motor cortex blood flow assessed by near infrared spectroscopy.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Motor cortex blood flow will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in the temperature pain threshold.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Pain thresholds will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Change in the visual analogue scale for pain to prolonged thermal stimuli.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Pain to prolonged thermal stimuli will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Change in average daily pain assessed with the visual analogue scale.
Time Frame: Starting on day 1, each day until Week 12. Total: 84 Evaluations.
Patients will be asked to daily write down their average pain level (assessed by the Visual Analogue Scale, self-administered) in a paper diary. Total evaluations: 84.
Starting on day 1, each day until Week 12. Total: 84 Evaluations.
Change in the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin); week 2, week 8 and week 12 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before initiating treatment. Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire will be assessed 2, 8 and 12 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin); week 2, week 8 and week 12 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Change in quality of life assessed by the WHOQOL (World Health Organization Quality of Life), reduced form, adapted to Brazilian Portuguese.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2, week 8 and week 12 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before initiating treatment. Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Quality of life will be assessed 2, 8 and 12 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2, week 8 and week 12 after initiating the allocated intervention.

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Serum biomarkers levels: The brain derived neurotrophic factor, salivary cortisol, tumor necrosis factor alpha, Interleukin 1, 6 and 10 levels will be measured.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before and 1 hour after a single dose of 150 mg of Pregabalin. Patients will also receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Motor cortex blood flow will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Four Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin; and 1 hour after the first dose of pregabalin); week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Level of depressive symptoms.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before initiating treatment. Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Depression symptoms will be assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory, which covers neurovegetative symptoms of depression. It will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Three Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Sleep quality.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Will be assessed before initiating treatment. Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Sleep quality will be assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and the 10 cm scale of sleep quality. It will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Three Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
Pain catastrophizing thoughts.
Time Frame: Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.
The level of catastrophic thinking will be assessed by the scale of catastrophic thoughts adapted to the Brazilian population (BP-PCS). Will be assessed before initiating treatment. Patients will receive pregabalin 150 mg PO BID + tDCS (or sham tDCS) daily during 2 weeks, and then twice per week until week 8th. Pain catastrophizing thoughts will be assessed 2 and 8 weeks after initiating the allocated intervention. Total: Three Evaluations.
Day 1 (1 hour before receiving the 1st dose of pregabalin), week 2 and week 8 after initiating the allocated intervention.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Wolnei Caumo, MD, PhD, Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 1, 2013

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 1, 2014

Study Completion (Anticipated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
July 8, 2013

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 17, 2013

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
July 22, 2013

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
July 22, 2013

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
July 17, 2013

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
July 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 120128

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings