Non-pharmacological Treatment for Pain After Spine Surgery

NCT ID: NCT04770480

Last Updated: 2025-07-03

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

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

267 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2021-12-10

Study Completion Date

2026-03-30

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

This study will compare the effectiveness of two pain management pathways (standard vs. enriched) for patients undergoing lumbar spine surgery in the Military Health System (MHS). Effectiveness will be based on post-surgery patient-centered outcomes and extent of opioid use. The study design is a 2-arm, parallel group, individual-randomized trial.

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

The relevance of our model is supported by evidence that pain catastrophizing, self-efficacy and hypervigilance predict poor surgical outcomes and long-term opioid use. Surgery can exacerbate catastrophic thinking, especially if patients have unrealistic recovery expectations that go unmet. Physical therapy (PT) can improve chronic LBP (low back pain) outcomes, with effects mediated through changes in pain catastrophizing and self-efficacy. Mindfulness techniques help patients disentangle an experience (e.g., pain) from associated emotions and appraisals. Mindfulness can enhance emotion regulation and raise un-conscious behavioral responses (e.g., opioid use) to conscious consideration. The benefits of mindfulness for chronic pain are mediated by changes in hypervigilance and self-efficacy. Physical therapy and mindfulness can disrupt the self-reinforcing cycle of pain, catastrophic appraisal and unconscious behavioral response including opioid use. Our project examines an innovative strategy to integrate mindfulness and PT into an enriched surgical management pathway for individuals undergoing lumbar spine surgery.

Patients at 3 different military hospitals will be randomized prior to surgery to two different treatment groups and followed for a period of 6 months, including the post-operative intervention phase.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Low Back Pain Chronic Pain Surgery Back Pain, Low Back Pain Lower Back Chronic

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Outcome: The primary analysis will be performed by fitting a longitudinal linear model to the PEG scores at baseline, 2 weeks and 26 weeks.

Secondary Outcome: Kaplan Meier curves with 95% pointwise confidence limits will be constructed to summarize the time to opioid discontinuation in each of the EPM and SC treatment groups. Time to opioid discontinuation will be compared between groups using a stratified log-rank test, with stratification for three randomization stratification factors.
Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

DOUBLE

Investigators Outcome Assessors
Study participants and clinicians cannot be blinded to study treatments. Randomization assignment will not be revealed until after enrollment and completion of baseline assessments. Study statisticians cannot be blinded to participants' study treatment assignments because they must complete Data Safety Monitoring Reports and analyze the study outcomes by treatment group. Study investigators will remain blinded to participants' treatment group assignment. Follow-up assessments will be performed by a research assistant who will be blinded to participants' treatment group assignment.

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

Standard Care (SC)

Standard Post-Surgical Care utilizing opioids.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Standard Care (SC)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

No attempt will be made to change usual care practice after surgery

Enriched Surgical Management Pathway (EMP)

Enriched Surgical Management Pathway utilizing Physical Therapy and Mindfulness in addition to Standard Protocol.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Enriched Pain Management Pathway (EPM)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enriched Pain Management Pathway will be delivered by physical therapists trained to integrate physical therapy and mindfulness techniques grounded in a biopsychosocial context. The intervention will be delivered within the context of the post-operative physical therapy routine (the mindfulness approach will be integrated into the post-operative physical therapy care).

Interventions

Learn about the drugs, procedures, or behavioral strategies being tested and how they are applied within this trial.

Standard Care (SC)

No attempt will be made to change usual care practice after surgery

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enriched Pain Management Pathway (EPM)

Enriched Pain Management Pathway will be delivered by physical therapists trained to integrate physical therapy and mindfulness techniques grounded in a biopsychosocial context. The intervention will be delivered within the context of the post-operative physical therapy routine (the mindfulness approach will be integrated into the post-operative physical therapy care).

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

1. Tricare beneficiary receiving care in a participating MHS facility.
2. Age 18 - 75 years at the time of enrollment
3. Scheduled to undergo lumbar spine surgery within the next 60 days. Surgery may be laminectomy with or without fusions including lateral, transforaminal, posterior or anterior approach for 1-4 lumbar levels. Surgery may be performed in military or civilian facility
4. Indication for surgery may include disc herniation, degenerative disc disease, lumbar stenosis, degenerative spondylolisthesis or scoliosis.
5. Anticipates ability to attend treatment sessions over a 16 week period following the surgical procedure with no planned absence of 2 weeks or more for training, vacation or any purpose

Exclusion Criteria

1. Indication for surgery is infection, fracture, tumor, trauma or other indication requiring emergency surgery.
2. A microsurgical technique as the primary procedure, such as an isolated laminotomy or microdiscectomy
3. Surgical procedure is a revision or participant has undergone a lumbar surgical procedure in the past year.
4. Contra-indication to participation in post-operative exercise program including severe orthopedic injury limiting mobility, wheelchair dependency, neurological disorder impacting mobility, reliance on supplemental oxygen for daily activity, etc.
5. Pending a medical evaluation board, discharge from the military for medical reasons, or pending or undergoing any litigation for an injury
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

75 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

Meet the organizations funding or collaborating on the study and learn about their roles.

University of Utah

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Madigan Army Medical Center

FED

Sponsor Role collaborator

Tripler Army Medical Center

FED

Sponsor Role collaborator

59th Medical Wing

FED

Sponsor Role collaborator

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

NIH

Sponsor Role collaborator

Brooke Army Medical Center

FED

Sponsor Role collaborator

Dan Rhon

FED

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

Identify the individual or organization who holds primary responsibility for the study information submitted to regulators.

Dan Rhon

Director, Primary Care Musculoskeletal Research Center

Responsibility Role SPONSOR_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Learn about the lead researchers overseeing the trial and their institutional affiliations.

Julie M Fritz, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Utah

Daniel I Rhon, DSc

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Brooke Army Medical Center

Locations

Explore where the study is taking place and check the recruitment status at each participating site.

Tripler Army Medical Center

Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

Site Status

Brooke Army Medical Center

San Antonio, Texas, United States

Site Status

Madigan Army Medical Center

Tacoma, Washington, United States

Site Status

Countries

Review the countries where the study has at least one active or historical site.

United States

References

Explore related publications, articles, or registry entries linked to this study.

Deyo RA, Hallvik SE, Hildebran C, Marino M, O'Kane N, Carson J, Van Otterloo J, Wright DA, Millet LM, Wakeland W. Use of prescription opioids before and after an operation for chronic pain (lumbar fusion surgery). Pain. 2018 Jun;159(6):1147-1154. doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001202.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 29521813 (View on PubMed)

Weinstein JN, Tosteson TD, Lurie JD, Tosteson AN, Hanscom B, Skinner JS, Abdu WA, Hilibrand AS, Boden SD, Deyo RA. Surgical vs nonoperative treatment for lumbar disk herniation: the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT): a randomized trial. JAMA. 2006 Nov 22;296(20):2441-50. doi: 10.1001/jama.296.20.2441.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17119140 (View on PubMed)

Ong KL, Stoner KE, Yun BM, Lau E, Edidin AA. Baseline and postfusion opioid burden for patients with low back pain. Am J Manag Care. 2018 Aug 1;24(8):e234-e240.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 30130023 (View on PubMed)

Woby SR, Urmston M, Watson PJ. Self-efficacy mediates the relation between pain-related fear and outcome in chronic low back pain patients. Eur J Pain. 2007 Oct;11(7):711-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ejpain.2006.10.009. Epub 2007 Jan 10.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 17218132 (View on PubMed)

Morasco BJ, Yarborough BJ, Smith NX, Dobscha SK, Deyo RA, Perrin NA, Green CA. Higher Prescription Opioid Dose is Associated With Worse Patient-Reported Pain Outcomes and More Health Care Utilization. J Pain. 2017 Apr;18(4):437-445. doi: 10.1016/j.jpain.2016.12.004. Epub 2016 Dec 18.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 27993558 (View on PubMed)

Fritz JM, Magel JS, McFadden M, Asche C, Thackeray A, Meier W, Brennan G. Early Physical Therapy vs Usual Care in Patients With Recent-Onset Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2015 Oct 13;314(14):1459-67. doi: 10.1001/jama.2015.11648.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 26461996 (View on PubMed)

Rhon DI, Miller RB, Fritz JM. Effectiveness and Downstream Healthcare Utilization for Patients That Received Early Physical Therapy Versus Usual Care for Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2018 Oct 1;43(19):1313-1321. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0000000000002619.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 29489568 (View on PubMed)

Lo YT, Lim-Watson M, Seo Y, Fluetsch N, Alasmari MM, Alsheikh MY, Lamba N, Smith TR, Aglio LS, Mekary RA. Long-Term Opioid Prescriptions After Spine Surgery: A Meta-Analysis of Prevalence and Risk Factors. World Neurosurg. 2020 Sep;141:e894-e920. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2020.06.081. Epub 2020 Jun 19.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 32569762 (View on PubMed)

Siglin J, Sorkin JD, Namiranian K. Incidence of Postoperative Opioid Overdose and New Diagnosis of Opioid Use Disorder Among US Veterans. Am J Addict. 2020 Jul;29(4):295-304. doi: 10.1111/ajad.13022. Epub 2020 Mar 22.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 32202000 (View on PubMed)

Schoenfeld AJ, Belmont PJ Jr, Blucher JA, Jiang W, Chaudhary MA, Koehlmoos T, Kang JD, Haider AH. Sustained Preoperative Opioid Use Is a Predictor of Continued Use Following Spine Surgery. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2018 Jun 6;100(11):914-921. doi: 10.2106/JBJS.17.00862.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 29870441 (View on PubMed)

Related Links

Access external resources that provide additional context or updates about the study.

Other Identifiers

Review additional registry numbers or institutional identifiers associated with this trial.

3UH3AT009763-04S1

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

eIRB

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

More Related Trials

Additional clinical trials that may be relevant based on similarity analysis.

Free From Pain Study
NCT05404399 UNKNOWN NA
Weight Reduction in CLBP
NCT04824248 RECRUITING NA