Transvaginal Low-level Laser Therapy to Improve Pelvic Pain and Sexual Function in Patients with Endometriosis.

NCT ID: NCT05540353

Last Updated: 2025-02-19

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

TERMINATED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

6 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2023-05-02

Study Completion Date

2024-07-01

Brief Summary

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Dyspareunia is defined as pain with penetrative sexual intercourse. Women with endometriosis have a nine-fold increased risk of dyspareunia, when compared to the general female population.

A prospective single-blinded randomized controlled trial will be performed evaluating the change in pelvic pain and sexual satisfaction scores from baseline to 6 weeks after treatment with transvaginal photobiomodulation therapy or sham therapy. Treatment will involve 9 planned treatment sessions over 3-4 weeks. 40 women will be included in the study.

Detailed Description

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Active intervention: Transvaginal photobiomodulation (TV-PBM) Control intervention: Sham transvaginal probe

All subjects will complete 9 treatments over 3-4 weeks and all treatments will be performed with a sheet over the patient's pelvic area to prevent the subject from seeing the probe light, as well as a screen blocking the patient's view of the machine. Subjects randomized to active therapy will undergo TV-PBM treatment during each session per standard TV-PBM treatment protocol. Subjects randomized to sham will undergo blinded sham therapy using an identical probe but without photobiomodulation. Sham therapy will involve the same regimen as the active arm but with the machine turned off. Instead, there will be a recording of the usual noise of the machine to mimic the activation that occurs when stepping on the pedal with the machine on for TV-PBM treatment.

Conditions

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Endometriosis Dyspareunia Pelvic Pain

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Participants

Study Groups

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Transvaginal photobiomodulation

Participants will undergo active transvaginal photobiomodulation therapy per clinic protocol, using the SoLa Pelvic Therapy system. This includes 9 treatments, each lasting about 3-5 minutes. A sterile narrow vaginal probe is inserted into the vagina, the low-level laser is activated, and the probe is slowly moved along the vaginal walls for the indicated period of time, via a surface area power calculation based on the measured vaginal length at the beginning of the procedure. The 9 treatments must be completed in 3-4 weeks.

Intervention: Active SoLa Low-level laser therapy

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Transvaginal photobiomodulation

Intervention Type DEVICE

Low light laser therapy applied transvaginally using a small vaginal wand with sterile disposable wand covers. The intervention last 3-5 minutes based on a surface area calculation performed at the beginning of the intervention, and involves a gentle in and out motion of the wand to deliver light energy to the muscles of the pelvic floor.

Sham treatment

Participants will undergo sham transvaginal photobiomodulation therapy, following the same protocol as the active arm, without activation of the machine. This includes 9 treatments, lasting 3-5 minutes each. A sterile narrow vaginal probe is inserted into the vagina, the machine is NOT activated, and the inactive probe is slowly moved along the vaginal walls for 3-5 minutes. The 9 treatments must be completed in 3-4 weeks.

Intervention: Mock treatment with inactivated probe

Group Type SHAM_COMPARATOR

Sham therapy

Intervention Type DEVICE

Use of the same vaginal wand as active arm, but without activation of the machine. The intervention last 3-5 minutes, and involves a gentle in and out motion of the wand to massage the muscles of the pelvic floor, without delivery of light therapy.

Interventions

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Transvaginal photobiomodulation

Low light laser therapy applied transvaginally using a small vaginal wand with sterile disposable wand covers. The intervention last 3-5 minutes based on a surface area calculation performed at the beginning of the intervention, and involves a gentle in and out motion of the wand to deliver light energy to the muscles of the pelvic floor.

Intervention Type DEVICE

Sham therapy

Use of the same vaginal wand as active arm, but without activation of the machine. The intervention last 3-5 minutes, and involves a gentle in and out motion of the wand to massage the muscles of the pelvic floor, without delivery of light therapy.

Intervention Type DEVICE

Other Intervention Names

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SoLa Pelvic Therapy

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Proficient English-speaking females
* Pathology proven endometriosis, \>6 weeks from prior pelvic surgery
* Current dyspareunia

Exclusion Criteria

* Unable to comply with study protocol
* Pregnant or attempting to become pregnant
* History of or active treatment for pelvic malignancy
* Currently taking light-sensitizing drugs
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

FEMALE

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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Patty Brisben Foundation For Women's Sexual Health

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Medstar Health Research Institute

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

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James Robinson, MD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Medstar Health Research Institute

Locations

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MedStar Washington Hospital Center

Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States

Site Status

MedStar Lafayette Center

Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States

Site Status

MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States

Site Status

MedStar Mitchellville Clinic

Mitchellville, Maryland, United States

Site Status

MedStar Rockville Clinic

Rockville, Maryland, United States

Site Status

MedStar McLean Clinic

McLean, Virginia, United States

Site Status

Countries

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United States

References

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Stratton P, Khachikyan I, Sinaii N, Ortiz R, Shah J. Association of chronic pelvic pain and endometriosis with signs of sensitization and myofascial pain. Obstet Gynecol. 2015 Mar;125(3):719-728. doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000000663.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 25730237 (View on PubMed)

Howard FM. Endometriosis and mechanisms of pelvic pain. J Minim Invasive Gynecol. 2009 Sep-Oct;16(5):540-50. doi: 10.1016/j.jmig.2009.06.017.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 19835795 (View on PubMed)

FitzGerald MP, Payne CK, Lukacz ES, Yang CC, Peters KM, Chai TC, Nickel JC, Hanno PM, Kreder KJ, Burks DA, Mayer R, Kotarinos R, Fortman C, Allen TM, Fraser L, Mason-Cover M, Furey C, Odabachian L, Sanfield A, Chu J, Huestis K, Tata GE, Dugan N, Sheth H, Bewyer K, Anaeme A, Newton K, Featherstone W, Halle-Podell R, Cen L, Landis JR, Propert KJ, Foster HE Jr, Kusek JW, Nyberg LM; Interstitial Cystitis Collaborative Research Network. Randomized multicenter clinical trial of myofascial physical therapy in women with interstitial cystitis/painful bladder syndrome and pelvic floor tenderness. J Urol. 2012 Jun;187(6):2113-8. doi: 10.1016/j.juro.2012.01.123. Epub 2012 Apr 12.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 22503015 (View on PubMed)

Chung H, Dai T, Sharma SK, Huang YY, Carroll JD, Hamblin MR. The nuts and bolts of low-level laser (light) therapy. Ann Biomed Eng. 2012 Feb;40(2):516-33. doi: 10.1007/s10439-011-0454-7. Epub 2011 Nov 2.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 22045511 (View on PubMed)

Kohli N, Jarnagin B, Stoehr AR, Lamvu G. An observational cohort study of pelvic floor photobiomodulation for treatment of chronic pelvic pain. J Comp Eff Res. 2021 Dec;10(17):1291-1299. doi: 10.2217/cer-2021-0187. Epub 2021 Sep 7.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 34490787 (View on PubMed)

Zipper R, Pryor B, Lamvu G. Transvaginal Photobiomodulation for the Treatment of Chronic Pelvic Pain: A Pilot Study. Womens Health Rep (New Rochelle). 2021 Nov 23;2(1):518-527. doi: 10.1089/whr.2021.0097. eCollection 2021.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 34841398 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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STUDY00005330

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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