Evaluation of Stepped Care for Chronic Pain in Iraq/Afghanistan Veterans (ESCAPE)

NCT ID: NCT00386243

Last Updated: 2019-07-05

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 242 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2007-12-31
• Study Completion Date: 2012-09-30

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine if a stepped-care intervention makes pain symptoms better and reduces activity limitations because of pain. Our two primary hypotheses are that in OIF/OEF veterans with chronic pain:

1. Stepped care is more effective than usual care in reducing pain-related disability

2. Stepped care is more effective than usual care in reducing psychological distress

Detailed Description

Through the Evaluation of Stepped Care for Chronic Pain (ESCAPE) trial we aim to develop and test a stepped-care intervention to improve functional and work-related outcomes in Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation Enduring Freedom veterans with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Stepped-care involves starting with lower intensity, less costly treatments initially (Step 1) and "stepping up" to more intensive, costly, or complex treatments in patients with inadequate response (Step 2). The study design will be a randomized controlled trial. The stepped care approach will involve 12 weeks of a pain self-management program in Step 1 followed by 12 weeks of brief cognitive behavioral therapy in participants with inadequate improvement in pain-related disability (Step 2). Patients treated in usual care will be the control group. Thus, the primary objective of the ESCAPE trial is to conduct a randomized controlled trial to compare the effectiveness of a stepped care intervention vs. usual care in OIF/OEF veterans with chronic and disabling musculoskeletal pain and evaluate the impact of this intervention on pain-related disability, work function, psychological distress, and secondary outcomes.

Conditions

Low Back Pain; Pain; Pain, Intractable

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Usual Care

Study subjects randomized to this arm would receive usual care from their provider(s). No study intervention is undertaken on subjects in this arm. Participants in Usual Care would complete the same four outcome assessments (surveys) throughout the course of the study that members of the intervention complete.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Stepped Care

Study subjects randomized to this arm would receive stepped care for their pain. Stepped care involves FDA-approved analgesic therapy, a 12-week pain self-management program, and if pain does not improve, a 12-week cognitive behavioral therapy program.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Cognitive behavioral therapy is delivered by phone by a nurse care-manager 6 times over a 12-week period. Sessions last approximately 45 minutes and occur at weeks 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 of the study.

Pain self-management program

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

The pain self-management program is delivered by a nurse care-manager during a 12-week period. Sessions are each 45 minutes long and phone-based. They occur at baseline, week 1, week 3, week 6, week 9, and week 12.

Co-Analgesic Therapy

Intervention Type: DRUG

Amitriptyline, start at 10-25, titrate to 100 mg Nortriptyline, start at 10-25, titrate to 100 mg

Gabapentin, titrate up to 900-1200 tid venlafaxine, carbemazepine, duloxetine, and/or pregabalin

Cyclobenzaprine, titrate to 10 mg TID fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram

Opioid Analgesics

Intervention Type: DRUG

Tramadol 50 mg BID or TID and titrate to 100 mg QID Acetaminophen/codeine (300mg/30mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Acetaminophen/hydrocodone (500mg/5mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Acetaminophen/oxycodone (500mg/5mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Morphine SR (30mg). Start at 30 mg twice a day (titrate up to 240mg/day if needed) Methadone (5-10mg). Start at 5mg bid; titrate 10mg tid (max 20mg tid)

Interventions

Cognitive behavioral therapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy is delivered by phone by a nurse care-manager 6 times over a 12-week period. Sessions last approximately 45 minutes and occur at weeks 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 of the study.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Pain self-management program

The pain self-management program is delivered by a nurse care-manager during a 12-week period. Sessions are each 45 minutes long and phone-based. They occur at baseline, week 1, week 3, week 6, week 9, and week 12.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Co-Analgesic Therapy

Amitriptyline, start at 10-25, titrate to 100 mg Nortriptyline, start at 10-25, titrate to 100 mg

Gabapentin, titrate up to 900-1200 tid venlafaxine, carbemazepine, duloxetine, and/or pregabalin

Cyclobenzaprine, titrate to 10 mg TID fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram

Intervention Type: DRUG

Opioid Analgesics

Tramadol 50 mg BID or TID and titrate to 100 mg QID Acetaminophen/codeine (300mg/30mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Acetaminophen/hydrocodone (500mg/5mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Acetaminophen/oxycodone (500mg/5mg). Take 1 or 2 tablets qid prn pain Morphine SR (30mg). Start at 30 mg twice a day (titrate up to 240mg/day if needed) Methadone (5-10mg). Start at 5mg bid; titrate 10mg tid (max 20mg tid)

Intervention Type: DRUG

Other Intervention Names

Often referred to as "CBT."

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• have musculoskeletal pain of the low back, cervical spine, or extremities
• have chronic pain (>3 months duration)
• have moderate functional impairment
• have access to a working telephone
• Indianapolis Roudebush VA Medical Center patient or Walter Reed Army Medical Center patient
• willing to travel at least once to study site

Exclusion Criteria

• prior back or cervical spine surgery or surgery pending
• active psychosis
• incompetent for interview
• severe impairment of hearing or speech
• active suicidal ideation
• current alcohol or other substance dependence or abuse

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

VA Office of Research and Development

FED

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Matthew J. Bair, MD MS

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Richard Roudebush VA Medical Center

Locations

Richard Roudebush VA Medical Center, Indianapolis

Indianapolis, Indiana, United States

Countries

United States

References

Kroenke K, Bair MJ, Damush TM, Wu J, Hoke S, Sutherland J, Tu W. Optimized antidepressant therapy and pain self-management in primary care patients with depression and musculoskeletal pain: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA. 2009 May 27;301(20):2099-110. doi: 10.1001/jama.2009.723.

Reference Type: RESULT

PMID: 19470987 (View on PubMed)

Kroenke K, Wu J, Yu Z, Bair MJ, Kean J, Stump T, Monahan PO. Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety and Depression Scale: Initial Validation in Three Clinical Trials. Psychosom Med. 2016 Jul-Aug;78(6):716-27. doi: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000322.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 27187854 (View on PubMed)

Bair MJ, Ang D, Wu J, Outcalt SD, Sargent C, Kempf C, Froman A, Schmid AA, Damush TM, Yu Z, Davis LW, Kroenke K. Evaluation of Stepped Care for Chronic Pain (ESCAPE) in Veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Conflicts: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2015 May;175(5):682-9. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2015.97.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 25751701 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

F4437-I

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

NCT00449475

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: nct_alias