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Behavioural Intervention

Light Therapy for Chronic Pain

N/A
Waitlist Available
Led By Matthew C Mauck, MD, PhD
Research Sponsored by University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Eligibility Criteria Checklist
Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial
Must have
Individuals who experience an average pain severity greater than 7/10 in intensity at baseline
Individuals who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia or chronic low back pain by their physician
Timeline
Screening 3 weeks
Treatment Varies
Follow Up 1 week prior to baseline and 1 week during light stimulation
Awards & highlights

Study Summary

This trial will test how light may reduce chronic pain severity & sensitivity in people with chronic back pain & fibromyalgia. Results may help design light therapies to help reduce pain.

Who is the study for?
Adults over 18 with fibromyalgia or chronic low back pain, who rate their pain at least 7/10, can join this trial. They must be willing to use a light therapy device for two hours each morning for five days and be able to read and speak English. People with seizure disorders, severe vision impairments, color blindness, pregnancy, or prisoners cannot participate.Check my eligibility
What is being tested?
The study tests if different types of light stimuli (Green Light stimulation, Equal Energy White stimulation, S-cone modulating white light) presented through a portable device can reduce chronic pain severity and sensitivity in patients with conditions like fibromyalgia and lower back pain.See study design
What are the potential side effects?
There are no specific side effects mentioned for the light therapies being tested in this trial. However, participants should report any discomfort or unexpected reactions during the treatment period.

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

You may be eligible if you check “Yes” for the criteria below
Select...
My average pain level is more than 7 out of 10.
Select...
I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia or chronic low back pain.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks
Treatment ~ Varies
Follow Up ~1 week prior to baseline and 1 week during light stimulation
This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and 1 week prior to baseline and 1 week during light stimulation for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Outcome measures can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.
Primary outcome measures
Feasibility: Percent follow-up
Feasibility: Percent of flash surveys completed
Feasibility: Self-reported light stimulation sessions completed
Secondary outcome measures
Change in Conditioned Pain modulation
Change in Temporal Summation
Change in activity measured with an accelerometer
+2 more

Trial Design

3Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Group I: S-cone modulating white lightExperimental Treatment1 Intervention
The S-cone modulating light stimulus will alternate between two light conditions at 500 lux that will activate the S-cones by about 100x differentially between the two conditions while maintaining the L- an M-cones at constant activation between the two alternating conditions using 427 nm versus 545 nm light. The stimulus will be delivered by a portable battery-operated ganzfeld light stimulation device for 2 hours per day for 5 consecutive days.
Group II: Green light stimulusExperimental Treatment1 Intervention
Green light at 500 lux. Participants will view 545 nm green light delivered via a portable battery-operated ganzfeld light stimulation device for 2 hours per day for 5 consecutive days.
Group III: Equal energy white stimulusExperimental Treatment1 Intervention
Equal energy white light at 500 lux. The International Commission on Illumination (CIE) coordinates of this light are (x=y=0.33), indicating that the stimulus appears uniformly white which means that the activation of each of the three classes of photoreceptors are equivalent, thus silencing any chromatic opponency. The stimulus will be delivered by a portable battery-operated ganzfeld light stimulation device for 2 hours per day for 5 consecutive days.

Find a Location

Who is running the clinical trial?

University of North Carolina, Chapel HillLead Sponsor
1,506 Previous Clinical Trials
4,190,501 Total Patients Enrolled
10 Trials studying Chronic Pain
1,037 Patients Enrolled for Chronic Pain
Matthew C Mauck, MD, PhDPrincipal InvestigatorUniversity of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
1 Previous Clinical Trials
24 Total Patients Enrolled
1 Trials studying Chronic Pain
24 Patients Enrolled for Chronic Pain

Media Library

Equal Energy White stimulation (Behavioural Intervention) Clinical Trial Eligibility Overview. Trial Name: NCT05956067 — N/A
Chronic Pain Research Study Groups: Equal energy white stimulus, Green light stimulus, S-cone modulating white light
Chronic Pain Clinical Trial 2023: Equal Energy White stimulation Highlights & Side Effects. Trial Name: NCT05956067 — N/A
Equal Energy White stimulation (Behavioural Intervention) 2023 Treatment Timeline for Medical Study. Trial Name: NCT05956067 — N/A

Frequently Asked Questions

These questions and answers are submitted by anonymous patients, and have not been verified by our internal team.

Is the trial currently seeking participants?

"The trial is no longer recruiting for participants, having been posted on July 17th 2023 and last updated 13 days ago. Alternatively, there are 768 other clinical trials that currently welcome patients to join their research."

Answered by AI

What outcomes is this research endeavor seeking to attain?

"This clinical trial has one primary goal, which is to determine the rate of successful survey completion. Secondary objectives include measuring changes in pressure pain threshold (the maximum being 10 kgf/cm^2 and minimum 0), conditioned pain modulation (calculated as a difference between pre- and post-conditioning stimulus) ,and temporal summation(measured through applying 40g Neuropen on skin). All measurements will be taken over approximately 1 week."

Answered by AI

Who else is applying?

What site did they apply to?
University Of North Carolina
What portion of applicants met pre-screening criteria?
Met criteria

Why did patients apply to this trial?

I'd like to come off opiates if I can find something else that works. I have rheumatoid arthritis and chronic lower back pain that started in my teens. I’ve tried many medications but the side effects always outweigh the benefits at some point.
PatientReceived 2+ prior treatments
I’ve just recently had back surgery. Since being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia I have tried several medications. I don’t want to live on pills. The hardest part about this is that you feel trapped in your own body. I can’t workout too hard or it will put me in for days. The balance has been incredibly difficult being that I’m a mom of 4. My mother died young with this disease. I want to try anything that can help outside of medications.
PatientReceived 1 prior treatment
~35 spots leftby Jul 2025