Impact of DuoTherm Compared to TENS on Pain and Disability With Acute and Chronic Low Back Pain

NCT ID: NCT04494698

Last Updated: 2025-07-18

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

160 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2022-06-23

Study Completion Date

2025-06-24

Brief Summary

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Evaluate pain and disability change in Low Back Pain with DuoTherm Compared to Active Control

Detailed Description

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160 patients with moderate to severe acute or exacerbations of chronic low back pain presenting for chiropractic and rehabilitation care will be randomized to one of two conditions: a pain relief belt device incorporating multiple speeds of vibration and optional heat, cold, and pressure delivered through a sculpted metal plate; or an 8 channel prescription TENS unit. Patients will be prompted by a Qualtrics text link to a secure data recording site collecting pain and medication use.

Conditions

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Acute Low-back Pain Chronic Low-back Pain Pain, Intractable

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Randomized active control
Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

TRIPLE

Participants Investigators Outcome Assessors
Participants will be instructed that non-drug interventions are being evaluated for their impact on opioid use and pain with low back pain, and that they will be self-assessing pain and reporting use of prescribed and over-the-counter medications. Study staff will train them on the device or TENS units via a pre-made video, but investigators and outcomes assessors (statistician) will not be informed of the hypothesis-driving condition arm. An assessment for blinding will be administered at the end of the data collection for participants, asking whether participants believe they are in treatment or control, and how confident they are.

Study Groups

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DuoTherm VibraCool Back Device

A multimodal low back pain relief device incorporating 8 mechanical stimulation patterns of vibration and 5 intensity settings with optional heat, cold, or pressure delivered through a sculpted metal plate attached by a belt and controlled by buttons on the belt. Patients will be instructed to use the device daily for 30 minutes.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Duotherm VibraCool Back Device

Intervention Type DEVICE

Active New multimodal pain device

Multimodal TENS Unit

LG SMART TENS stimulator is an 8-channel portable electrotherapy device featuring transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) therapeutic device, which is used for pain relief. The stimulator sends a gentle electrical current to underlying nerves and muscle groups via electrodes applied on the skin. The parameters of the device are controlled by buttons on a controller with an adjustable intensity level.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

TENS 8-channel unit

Intervention Type DEVICE

LG Smart TENS unit

Interventions

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Duotherm VibraCool Back Device

Active New multimodal pain device

Intervention Type DEVICE

TENS 8-channel unit

LG Smart TENS unit

Intervention Type DEVICE

Other Intervention Names

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Vibracool plus heat or pressure Buzzy

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Presentation for treatment of acute or acute exacerbation of chronic low back pain
* Self-report NRS measures \>=4 (moderate to severe)
* Capacity to understand all relevant risks and potential benefits of the study (informed consent)
* Willingness to communicate information on prescription pill # and dose, or dose and pill type if medication is prescribed by someone else.

Exclusion Criteria

* Pacemaker
* Radicular pain likely reflecting a surgical or mechanical problem
* BMI greater than 50 (device won't fit, initially thought to be BMI 30 but up to 50 included)
* Sensitivity to cold or vibration (e.g Raynaud's or Sickle Cell Disease)
* Diabetic neuropathy rendering a patient unable to determine if the device is too hot
* New neurologic deficits
* Skin lesions over the low back area
* Contraindication to any medication for pain management that would impact analgesic use record
* Inability to apply DuoTherm or Active Control TENS Device
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

90 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Sport and Spine Rehab Clinical Research Foundation

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

NIH

Sponsor Role collaborator

MMJ Labs LLC

INDUSTRY

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Amy Lynn Baxter

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Amy Baxter, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Pain Care Labs (a dba of MMJ Labs)

Locations

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Sport and Spine Rehab Clinics

Landover, Maryland, United States

Site Status

Sport and Spine Rehab Clinic

Fairfax, Virginia, United States

Site Status

Countries

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United States

References

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Deyo RA, Dworkin SF, Amtmann D, Andersson G, Borenstein D, Carragee E, Carrino J, Chou R, Cook K, Delitto A, Goertz C, Khalsa P, Loeser J, Mackey S, Panagis J, Rainville J, Tosteson T, Turk D, Von Korff M, Weiner DK. Report of the NIH Task Force on research standards for chronic low back pain. Phys Ther. 2015 Feb;95(2):e1-e18. doi: 10.2522/ptj.2015.95.2.e1.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 25639530 (View on PubMed)

Farrar JT, Young JP Jr, LaMoreaux L, Werth JL, Poole MR. Clinical importance of changes in chronic pain intensity measured on an 11-point numerical pain rating scale. Pain. 2001 Nov;94(2):149-158. doi: 10.1016/S0304-3959(01)00349-9.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 11690728 (View on PubMed)

Stumbo SP, Yarborough BJ, McCarty D, Weisner C, Green CA. Patient-reported pathways to opioid use disorders and pain-related barriers to treatment engagement. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2017 Feb;73:47-54. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2016.11.003. Epub 2016 Nov 15.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 28017184 (View on PubMed)

Darnall BD, Colloca L. Optimizing Placebo and Minimizing Nocebo to Reduce Pain, Catastrophizing, and Opioid Use: A Review of the Science and an Evidence-Informed Clinical Toolkit. Int Rev Neurobiol. 2018;139:129-157. doi: 10.1016/bs.irn.2018.07.022. Epub 2018 Aug 6.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 30146045 (View on PubMed)

Furlan AD, Giraldo M, Baskwill A, Irvin E, Imamura M. Massage for low-back pain. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015 Sep 1;2015(9):CD001929. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001929.pub3.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 26329399 (View on PubMed)

Maddalozzo GF, Kuo B, Maddalozzo WA, Maddalozzo CD, Galver JW. Comparison of 2 Multimodal Interventions With and Without Whole Body Vibration Therapy Plus Traction on Pain and Disability in Patients With Nonspecific Chronic Low Back Pain. J Chiropr Med. 2016 Dec;15(4):243-251. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2016.07.001. Epub 2016 Aug 25.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 27857632 (View on PubMed)

Cohen SP, Bhaskar A, Bhatia A, Buvanendran A, Deer T, Garg S, Hooten WM, Hurley RW, Kennedy DJ, McLean BC, Moon JY, Narouze S, Pangarkar S, Provenzano DA, Rauck R, Sitzman BT, Smuck M, van Zundert J, Vorenkamp K, Wallace MS, Zhao Z. Consensus practice guidelines on interventions for lumbar facet joint pain from a multispecialty, international working group. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2020 Jun;45(6):424-467. doi: 10.1136/rapm-2019-101243. Epub 2020 Apr 3.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 32245841 (View on PubMed)

Tang X, Schalet BD, Hung M, Brodke DS, Saltzman CL, Cella D. Linking Oswestry Disability Index to the PROMIS pain interference CAT with equipercentile methods. Spine J. 2021 Jul;21(7):1185-1192. doi: 10.1016/j.spinee.2021.02.012. Epub 2021 Feb 19.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 33610807 (View on PubMed)

Gilligan C, Volschenk W, Russo M, Green M, Gilmore C, Mehta V, Deckers K, De Smedt K, Latif U, Sayed D, Georgius P, Gentile J, Mitchell B, Langhorst M, Huygen F, Baranidharan G, Patel V, Mironer E, Ross E, Carayannopoulos A, Hayek S, Gulve A, Van Buyten JP, Tohmeh A, Fischgrund J, Lad S, Ahadian F, Deer T, Klemme W, Rauck R, Rathmell J, Maislin G, Heemels JP, Eldabe S. Five-Year Longitudinal Follow-Up of Restorative Neurostimulation Shows Durability of Effectiveness in Patients With Refractory Chronic Low Back Pain Associated With Multifidus Muscle Dysfunction. Neuromodulation. 2024 Jul;27(5):930-943. doi: 10.1016/j.neurom.2024.01.006. Epub 2024 Mar 12.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 38483366 (View on PubMed)

Baxter AL, Thrasher A, Etnoyer-Slaski JL, Cohen LL. Multimodal mechanical stimulation reduces acute and chronic low back pain: Pilot data from a HEAL phase 1 study. Front Pain Res (Lausanne). 2023 Apr 26;4:1114633. doi: 10.3389/fpain.2023.1114633. eCollection 2023.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 37179530 (View on PubMed)

Baxter AL, Etnoyer-Slaski JL, Tucker O, Williams JAR, Swartout K, Cohen LL, Lawson ML. Novel multimodal mechanical stimulation is superior to TENS to treat and prevent chronic low back pain: a randomized controlled trial. Front Pain Res (Lausanne). 2025 Aug 18;6:1625420. doi: 10.3389/fpain.2025.1625420. eCollection 2025.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 40901560 (View on PubMed)

Provided Documents

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Document Type: Informed Consent Form

View Document

Other Identifiers

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4R44DA049631

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

DuoTherm for Low Back Pain

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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