Randomized Blinded Evaluation of the Effects of TENS and IFC Compared to a Sham Device and SOC in Patients With Non-Specific CLBP

October 26, 2025 updated by: Zynex Medical, Inc.

Randomized Blinded Evaluation of the Effects of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation and Interferential Current Compared to a Sham Device and Standard of Care in Patients With Non-Specific Chronic Lower Back Pain

This is a prospective, sham-controlled, randomized, single-blinded, multi-center study comparing two different modes of the NexWave device, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and interferential current (IFC), with an identical non-functioning NexWave sham device or self-defined standard of care for improvement of pain intensity of non-specific CLBP.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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.

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 (Actual)

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.
334

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.
  • Not Applicable

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: Kristin Andrud, PhD
  • Phone Number: 3457 (800) 495-6670
  • Email: kandrud@zynex.com

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Colorado
      • Greenwood Village, Colorado, United States, 80111
        • DBPS Research
    • Florida
      • Saint Augustine, Florida, United States, 32095
        • McGreevy NeuroHealth
    • Georgia
      • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30327
        • Peachtree Orthopedics
      • Jasper, Georgia, United States, 30143
        • Horizon Clinical Research
    • Illinois
      • Bloomington, Illinois, United States, 61701
        • Applied Pain Institute, LLC
    • New York
      • Congers, New York, United States, 10920
        • One Oak Medical
    • North Carolina
      • Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States, 27103
        • The Center for Clinical Research, LLC
    • Utah
      • Lehi, Utah, United States, 84043
        • Summit Brain, Spine and Orthopedics

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Ages 18-70, or older if specified by law

  • Non-specific chronic lower back pain defined as:

    1. Having lasted ≥3 months in duration
    2. Current Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain rating ≥50 out of 100 (or an equivalent of 5 out of 10 on a 10-point scale)
    3. No radiating pain below the knee
    4. ≥75% back or buttock pain rather than lower extremity pain
  • Subjects who are willing and capable of providing informed consent
  • Subjects who are willing and capable of participating in all testing and questionnaire requirements associated with the clinical study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Any prior home use of the NexWave or any TENS/IFC device
  • Any history of lumbar spine surgery or spinal fractures
  • Subjects with a history of rheumatic disease
  • Subjects with spine disorders, deformities, or severe spinal conditions such as scoliosis and kyphosis, Pott's disease, disc protrusion, or others that can be attributed to specific causes of back pain
  • Subjects currently prescribed and adherent to opioid therapy
  • Current implanted cardiac pacemakers, defibrillators, cardiac pumps, spinal stimulators, or other implanted electronic devices
  • Active psychiatric or uncontrolled mood disorders including subjects on antipsychotic medication, diagnosis of bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, or uncontrolled anxiety or clinical depression
  • Subjects with a known history of allergic reactions to medical adhesives or any condition that could affect placement of the electrodes
  • Women of childbearing potential who are pregnant or who are planning to become pregnant during the anticipated study period
  • Subjects with health conditions that in the Investigator's medical opinion would prevent participation in the study, interfere with assessment or therapy, significantly raise the risk of study participation, or modify outcome data or its interpretation
  • Subjects who are currently enrolled in another investigational study that would directly interfere with the current study

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: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: Double

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: Sham TENS
Device: Sham
Sham subjects provided with Sham Device and treatment instructions identical to that of NexWave Device Arm for their designated Sham Arm. Sham subjects participate for 4 weeks with the option to crossover to the NexWave Device Arm for an additional 4 weeks (up to 8 weeks total).
Experimental: Device TENS
Device: NexWave
Device subjects receive designated treatment mode twice daily for up to 8 weeks.
Experimental: Device IFC
Device: NexWave
Device subjects receive designated treatment mode twice daily for up to 8 weeks.
Sham Comparator: Sham IFC
Device: Sham
Sham subjects provided with Sham Device and treatment instructions identical to that of NexWave Device Arm for their designated Sham Arm. Sham subjects participate for 4 weeks with the option to crossover to the NexWave Device Arm for an additional 4 weeks (up to 8 weeks total).
No Intervention: Control
Subjects continue with current standard of care only for 4 weeks with the option to crossover to the NexWave Device group for an additional 4 weeks (up to 8 total weeks).

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
Visual Analogue Scale Pain Rating - NexWave vs. Sham
Time Frame: Four weeks
VAS pain rating between baseline and four weeks for NexWave subjects as compared to sham device subjects.
Four weeks
Visual Analogue Scale Pain Rating - NexWave vs. Control
Time Frame: Four weeks
VAS pain rating between baseline and four weeks for NexWave subjects as compared to control or sham device subjects.
Four weeks

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
Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) - NexWave vs. Sham
Time Frame: Four weeks
ODI scores between baseline and four weeks for NexWave subjects as compared to sham device subjects.
Four weeks
Oswestry Disability Index (OD) - NexWave vs. Control
Time Frame: Four weeks
ODI scores between baseline and four weeks for NexWave subjects as compared to control or sham device subjects.
Four weeks

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.
Zynex Medical, Inc.

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: Christopher Gilmore, MD, The Center for Clinical Research

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 (Actual)

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.
November 2, 2023

Primary Completion (Actual)

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.
October 21, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

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.
October 21, 2025

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 25, 2023

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 25, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

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.
August 2, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

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.
October 28, 2025

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.
October 26, 2025

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.
October 1, 2025

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.
  • ZMI-2023-NexWave-vs-Sham

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

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.

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