The Effect of Pre-Operative Cryoneurolysis on Post-Operative Narcotic Consumption in Patients Undergoing Autograft ACL Reconstruction

May 11, 2026 updated by: Virtua Health, Inc.
The purpose of the research is to investigate the effect of preoperative Cryoneurolysis of the knee on postoperative pain management in patients undergoing autograft anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction (a surgical procedure that makes a new ACL using the patient's own tendon). Cryoneurolysis is an approved process of applying extreme cold temperatures to targeted nerves in order to decrease or eliminate pain. . If you take part in the research, you will be randomly assigned (assigned by chance, like a flip of a coin) to Group A (standard care) or Group B (standard care plus Cryoneurolysis). Participants in both groups will undergo standard ACL reconstruction and receive standard preoperative and postoperative pain management. Participants in Group B only will also receive a standard treatment of Cryoneurolysis to their surgical knee within 7-10 days before their scheduled surgery. Participants in both groups (A & B) will be asked to bring their remaining postoperative pain medication to their postoperative follow-up appointments for review by study personnel. Participants will also be asked to complete a survey about their knee activity, function and symptoms at these appointments. Your time in the study will last until the completion of the 12-week postoperative follow-up appointment.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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 (Estimated)

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.
20

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 Locations

  • United States
    • New Jersey
      • Burlington, New Jersey, United States, 08016
        • Recruiting
        • Virtua Orthopedics Burlington
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Sean Mc Millan, DO
      • Cherry Hill, New Jersey, United States, 08034
        • Recruiting
        • Virtua Orthopedics Cherry Hill
        • Contact:

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

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • - Patients aged 14 and over
  • Patients who are patients within the PI's practice
  • Patients who can speak and read English
  • Patients undergoing autograft ACL reconstruction.
  • Patients who are opioid naïve

Exclusion Criteria:

  • - Under the age of 14
  • Non-English speaking/reading patients
  • Patients with Reynauds' syndrome
  • Patients with skin disorders or hypo-vascularity
  • Patients undergoing allograft ACL reconstruction.
  • Patients who consistently use opioids preoperatively

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: 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.
No Intervention: Arm A: ACL reconstruction usual care
On the day of surgery, all patients (Group A and Group B) will receive a multi-modal oral pre-operative cocktail and an ultrasound guided adductor canal block. Additionally, an ultrasound guided popliteal or infiltration of the tissue plane between the popliteal artery and the capsule of the knee (iPACK) block will be administered. The pre-operative oral medication cocktail and block medications are as follows: Acetaminophen 975 mg x 1, Celecoxib 400 mg PO x 1, adductor canal block with 133 mg (10 mL) liposomal bupivacaine (EXPAREL) admixed with 0.5% bupivacaine HCl 50 mg (10 mL), popliteal or iPACK nerve infiltration with 133 mg (10 mL) liposomal bupivacaine (EXPAREL) admixed with 0.5% bupivacaine HCl 50 mg (10 mL). 15 mg IV ketorolac at conclusion of the case will be administered.
Experimental: Arm B: Usual care plus pre-operative cryoneurolysis
Those randomized to the intervention group (Group B) will receive a standard treatment of Cryoneurolysis to their surgical knee within 7-10 days of their scheduled surgery. Treatment nerves for the procedure will include the anterior femoral cutaneous nerve (AFCN), supra-patellar branch of the saphenous nerve (SPBSN) and infra-patellar branch of the saphenous nerve (IPBSN).
Procedure: Cryoneurolysis
Those randomized to the intervention group (Group B) will receive a standard treatment of Cryoneurolysis to their surgical knee within 7-10 days of their scheduled surgery. Treatment nerves for the procedure will include the anterior femoral cutaneous nerve (AFCN), supra-patellar branch of the saphenous nerve (SPBSN) and infra-patellar branch of the saphenous nerve (IPBSN).

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
Post-operative opioid consumption
Time Frame: Measured at 1-week, 6-weeks, 12-weeks
average daily morphine milliequivalents (MMEs) over the measured postoperative period
Measured at 1-week, 6-weeks, 12-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
IKDC Subjective Knee Evaluation Form
Time Frame: 1-week, 6-week, 12-week postoperative period
10-item self-rated scale measuring symptoms, athletic activity, and knee function.
1-week, 6-week, 12-week postoperative period

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.
Virtua Health, Inc.

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.
Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc

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 (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.
August 28, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

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 1, 2027

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).
September 10, 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.
September 16, 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.
September 19, 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.
May 12, 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.
May 11, 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.
May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • G24064
  • CON-000367 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Pacira Bioscience Inc.)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Will share aggregate data only

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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