Effects of Music During Walking on Pain and Muscle Activation in People With Chronic Pain Due to Knee Osteoarthritis

April 17, 2026 updated by: Deepak Kumar, Boston University Charles River Campus

Effects of Music-Based Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation During Walking on Nociceptive Signaling and Muscle Activation in People With Chronic Pain Due to Knee Osteoarthritis

The purpose of this research study is to compare muscle activation, changes in pain sensitivity, and brain function, between different walking conditions, including walking to music, walking to metronome, and walking without music or metronome.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet 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.

Detailed Description

Participants with knee osteoarthritis (OA) will complete a single study visit which will include three walking tasks, each being 25 minutes in duration. The walking tasks will include walking without music or metronome, walking to metronome, and walking with music. Participants muscle activity, brain activity, and movements will be recorded during these tasks. Participant's pressure pain threshold will be recorded at the beginning and after each task.

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.
  • Name: Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD
  • Phone Number: 617-358-3037
  • Email: kumard@bu.edu

Study Contact Backup

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:

  • Have activity related pain
  • Experience morning knee stiffness ≤ 30 minutes
  • Knee pain on most days for 3 months or more
  • Able to walk at least 20 minutes with assistance
  • Average overall knee pain severity of ≥= 4 on a 11-point numeric rating scale during previous week
  • BMI ≤ 40
  • Able to communicate using English at a level to understand the study procedures and informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Contraindications to exercise
  • Joint replacement in either hip, knee, or ankle
  • History of other disease that may involve the index joint including inflammatory joint disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, seronegative spondyloarthropathy (eg, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease related arthropathy), crystalline disease (eg, gout or pseudogout), lupus erythematosus, knee joint infections, Paget's disease affecting the knee, or knee joint tumors.
  • Previous knee osteotomy in either knee
  • Other health conditions that impact motor functioning or prevent participation (e.g., stroke, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Multiple Sclerosis, diabetic neuropathy, etc.)
  • Corticosteroid or hyaluronic acid injections in either knee in the previous 3 months
  • Pregnancy (self-report)
  • Suspected or known drugs or alcohol abuse
  • Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) score < 24
  • Hearing impairments
  • Pain in lower back or legs that is greater than knee pain

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: Basic Science
  • 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: Rhythmic auditory stimulation during walking
All participants will be exposed to different walking conditions including music, metronome, and no music or metronome
Behavioral: Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with music
Walking to rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with music
Behavioral: Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with metronome
walking to rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with metronome
Behavioral: Control
Walking to no music or metronome

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
Exercise-Induced Hypoalgesia (EIH)
Time Frame: Baseline
Change in pressure pain threshold (PPT) from baseline to after each walking task
Baseline
medial quadriceps - medial hamstrings muscle coactivation
Time Frame: Baseline
Medial quadriceps-medial hamstrings muscle co-activation in each walking task will be assessed using surface electromyography
Baseline

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
Medial quadriceps- medial gastrocnemius muscle coactivation
Time Frame: Baseline
Medial quadriceps-medial gastrocnemius muscle co-activation in each walking task will be assessed using surface electromyography
Baseline
lateral quadriceps- lateral hamstrings muscle coactivation
Time Frame: Baseline
Lateral quadriceps-lateral hamstrings muscle co-activation in each walking task will be assessed using surface electromyography
Baseline
lateral quadriceps - lateral gastrocnemius muscle coactivation
Time Frame: Baseline
Lateral quadriceps-lateral gastrocnemoius muscle co-activation in each walking task will be assessed using surface electromyography
Baseline

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
Auditory-motor synchronization
Time Frame: Baseline
difference between actual cadence and target cadence in each walking ask (except walking to no music or metronome)
Baseline
physical activity enjoyment
Time Frame: Baseline
Modified Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) score after each walking task. Range is 7-49 with higher scores indicating greater enjoyment.
Baseline
Prefrontal cortex activation
Time Frame: Baseline
Prefrontal cortex (PFC) brain activation during each walking task will be assessed using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)
Baseline
Supplementary Motor Area activation
Time Frame: Baseline
Supplementary Motor Area (SMA) brain activation during each walking task will be assessed using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)
Baseline

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.
Boston University Charles River Campus

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: Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD, Boston University Charles River Campus

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 (Estimated)

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 1, 2026

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.
June 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.
July 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).
April 6, 2026

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 12, 2026

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 17, 2026

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.
April 22, 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.
April 17, 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.
April 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.
  • 8399

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

IPD Plan Description

Requests will be considered on an individual basis

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

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.

Clinical Trials on Knee Osteoarthritis

Clinical Trials on Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with music

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

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