Optical Measurements of the Skin Surface to Infer Distinctions in Myofascial Tissue Stiffness (OptMeasSkin)

January 12, 2026 updated by: Gregory J. Gerling, University of Virginia
This study involves imaging the skin movements of surface tissue on the back. A clinician will perform assessment and intervention procedures manually, using manual and light movements of stretch and compression.

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.

Detailed Description

This study includes a demographic questionnaire, self-report on level of pain, application of ink to the skin, manual clinical assessments, and a massage intervention. The study will take place entirely in Olsson Hall. All information collected will be recorded using a randomized identification number.

  1. Upon arrival for the study, a participant will be asked to read, review, and sign this informed consent agreement.
  2. Next, the participant will be asked verbally to complete a demographic questionnaire.
  3. The study team will verbally ask the participant to rate the current level of pain.
  4. The participant will have been asked to bring clothes (e.g., sports bra, halter top, or swimming suit, etc.) to expose the upper back/neck region, and will change into those in an isolated room and within the overall laboratory space. A gown will be provided for additional privacy.
  5. Two researchers will be in the room during the session, with the gender of the researchers taken into account per participant. For example, for a male participant, the investigators plan to have a male researcher present during the session along with the female physical therapist. For a female participant, the investigators plan to have both the female physical therapist and a female researcher present.
  6. The study team will apply non-toxic, washable ink to the participant's back in two 10 by 10 cm areas near the shoulder blades on either side of the body.
  7. The participant will lie flat on a massage table.
  8. A camera system will record the movements of the fingers of the physical therapist, along with the movements of the skin. The investigators will videotape the upper part of the participant's back. A participant's face will never be videotaped, nor will audio be recorded.
  9. The physical therapist will conduct standard assessment procedures for about 2 minutes per side of the body, where the skin tissue will be compressed and slightly stretched
  10. A soft tissue intervention, or massage, lasting about 15 minutes will take place in the participant's upper back/neck region.
  11. Another assessment like that prior will be performed.
  12. The participant will again be verbally asked about the current level of pain.

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.
5

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.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Virginia
      • Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, 22904
        • University of Virginia

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

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Healthy or diagnosed with benign, non-vascular headache and associated cervical musculoskeletal dysfunction (e.g. tender spots, trigger points, stiffness.
  • Adult male and female.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Migraine headaches.
  • Known cardiovascular, pulmonary, or metabolic disease.
  • Any co-morbidities that could contribute to back or neck pain (e.g., head trauma, cancer, seizures, tumors, radiculopathies, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic auto-immune or inflammatory conditions).

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: Other
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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.
Experimental: Manual therapy intervention
Those participants with myofascial pain in the cervicothoracic region are assessed by manual palpation by a trained clinician.
Other: Soft tissue manipulation
The clinician will perform a soft tissue massage intervention where she/he will use moderate massaging and compression. The amount of pressure is less than 5 N, the velocity is low at a controlled rate of 1 Hz, the duration of 30 seconds, angle 90 and 45 degrees.

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
Skin Stretch Response to Manual Lateral Pull
Time Frame: Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant
In the study overall, a non-invasive surface skin imaging technique with three cameras is used to determine soft tissue deformation and mobility. Using this basis of data, this outcome measure characterizes the skin's stretch response to the manual application of lateral pull perpendicular to it's surface, as the clinician pulls the tissue lateral to its surface with her fingertips. Therefore, from this data, the specific outcome measure is 1st principal strain (%) against manual pull (which is measured as maximum displacement, in units millimeters) for each of the two directions of pull (superior - towards neck, inferior - away from neck).
Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant

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
Clinical Evaluation of Range of Motion
Time Frame: Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant
The assessing clinician will record the range of motion (ROM) of the neck with the subject in the upright, seated position, using a head mounted inclinometer system (Cervical Range-of-Motion Instrument Basic). Cervical ROM will be assessed bilaterally in four directions, a) extension, b) flexion, c) rotation, and d) lateral flexion. Units of degrees will be recorded per each motion.
Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant
Clinical Evaluation of Pressure Pain Threshold
Time Frame: Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant
The assessing clinician will use Algometry to quantify pressure pain threshold (PPT), defined as the minimum pressure applied with a handheld algometer at which the sensation changed from pressure to discomfort. Units of Newtons will be recorded.
Measured once at start and once at finish of one hour session per participant

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.
University of Virginia

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

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: Gregory Gerling, PhD, University of Virginia

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.
January 7, 2024

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.
April 22, 2024

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.
April 22, 2024

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).
February 15, 2024

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.
April 26, 2024

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.
April 30, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

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.
January 13, 2026

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.
January 12, 2026

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.
January 1, 2026

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.
  • IRBSBS6201
  • 5U24AT011969 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

Data obtained through this study may be provided to qualified researchers with academic interest in the area of soft tissue manipulation.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

Data requests can be submitted starting 9 months after article publication and the data will be made accessible for up to 24 months. Extensions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Access to individual participant data can be requested by qualified researchers engaging in independent scientific research, and will be provided following review and approval of a research proposal and Statistical Analysis Plan (SAP) and execution of a Data Sharing Agreement (DSA). For more information or to submit a request, please contact gg7h@virginia.edu

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

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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