Pain Neuroscience Education for Acute and Sub-Acute Low Back Pain

Pain Neuroscience Education for Acute and Sub-Acute Low Back Pain: An Exploratory Case Series

To determine if Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) would result in positive clinical changes in patients presenting with acute or sub-acute low back pain (LBP).

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Low Back Pain; Pain, Chronic; Pain, Back
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Pain Neuroscience Education

Detailed Description

Background: Pain neuroscience education (PNE) has shown efficacy in treating chronic pain. Clinicians may believe PNE is not suitable for acute and sub-acute pain. Subgroupings of low back pain (LBP) imply some patients with LBP may respond favorably to PNE.

Objective: To determine if PNE would result in positive clinical changes in patients presenting with acute or sub-acute LBP.

Methods: Eighty consecutive patients with LBP < 3 months were enrolled in the study. Patients completed a demographics questionnaire, leg and LBP rating (Numeric Pain Rating Scale - NPRS), disability (Oswestry Disability Index), fear-avoidance (Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire), pain catastrophization (Pain Catastrophization Scale), central sensitization (Central Sensitization Inventory), pain knowledge (Revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire), risk assessment (Keele STarT Back Screening Tool), active trunk flexion and straight leg raise (SLR). Patients received a 15-minute verbal, one-on-one PNE session, followed by repeat measurement of LBP and leg pain (NPRS), trunk flexion and SLR.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 80
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Nevada
    • Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, 89178
      • University of Nevada Las Vegas

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 14 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• a complaint of LBP with or without leg pain less than 3 months, and
• a willingness to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

• a) were under age 18 (minor);
• b) had undergone lumbar surgery;
• c) could not read or understand the English language;
• d) presented with any cognitive deficits rendering them unsuitable for PNE (i.e., stroke, traumatic brain injury, etc.),
• e) declined to participate or
• f) presented with a medical etiology (red flag) associated with their LBP.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Pain Neuroscience Education; Subjects received a 15-minute verbal, one-on-one Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) session	Behavioral: Pain Neuroscience Education; 15 minute verbal one-on-one education session

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
NPRS - LBP	Numeric Pain Rating Scale for Low Back Pain (Range 0 = no pain to 11 = maximum pain)	Immediate change from baseline after assigned intervention
NPRS - Leg pain	Numeric Pain Rating Scale for leg pain (Range 0 = no pain to 11 = maximum pain)	Immediate change from baseline after assigned intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Active trunk flexion	Active trunk flexion measured in centimeters from fingertips to floor	Immediate change from baseline in centimeters after assigned intervention
Passive Straight Leg Raise	Range of hip flexion angle during passive straight leg raise test measured in degrees	Immediate change from baseline in angular degrees after assigned intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Nevada, Las Vegas
• Collaborators: St. Ambrose University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Kevin Farrell, PhD, St. Ambrose University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 10, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): July 30, 2018
• Study Completion (Actual): July 30, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 22, 2018
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 24, 2018
• First Posted (Actual): October 26, 2018

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): October 26, 2018
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 24, 2018
• Last Verified: October 1, 2018

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Back Pain; Low Back Pain; Chronic Pain
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1202-4022

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: No