Meditation for Older Adults With Chronic Low Back Pain

NCT ID: NCT06384001

Last Updated: 2025-10-22

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

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

66 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2025-09-24

Study Completion Date

2026-12-31

Brief Summary

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This pilot randomized controlled trial aims to recruit 66 community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain and follow up them for 8 weeks. This study aims to test the preliminary effect of a mindfulness-based meditation (MBM) intervention on pain and symptoms among community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain, and also to test the effect of the MBM intervention on the host Gut-Brain Axis (GBA).

Detailed Description

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Aim 1: to test the preliminary effect of a mindfulness-based meditation (MBM) intervention on pain and symptoms among community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain.

Hypothesis: We hypothesize that our active mindfulness-based meditation intervention will be feasible and acceptable to community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain and improve pain and symptoms to a greater extent than older adults randomized to a sham mindfulness-based meditation group.

Aim 2: to test the effect of the mindfulness-based meditation intervention on the host Gut-Brain Axis (GBA).

Hypothesis: We hypothesize that older adults randomized to the active mindfulness-based meditation intervention will have significantly improved compositional patterns and functional profiles of gut microbiota and increased pain-related cortical response measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to a greater extent than older adults randomized to the sham mindfulness-based meditation group at 2-weeks post-intervention, and 8-weeks follow up.

Conditions

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Chronic Low Back Pain

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Active MBM

The active MBM is designed to be applied for 20 minutes per session daily.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Active MBM

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The MBM is designed to be applied for 20 minutes per session daily for two weeks. The recording will instruct participants to close their eyes, connect to the openness of one's minds, and mindfully maintain and deepen the connection through breathing with more openness and awareness. The MBM intervention will include three recordings that gradually take the participant into a more profound meditation practice. Participants will be instructed to listen to Meditation 1 for the first three days of the intervention, then switch to Meditation 2 for days 4-6 and Meditation 3 for the remainder of the 2-week intervention. The participants will be asked to practice meditation for eight weeks (6 weeks after the initial two weeks of MBM practice).

Sham MBM

The sham MBM intervention matches the active MBM

Group Type SHAM_COMPARATOR

Sham MBM

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The sham MBM intervention was also recorded. The sham recording will instruct participants to relax and take deep breaths every 3 minutes without the specific mindfulness-based instructions (e.g., practicing mindful attention to the breath in a non-evaluative manner). All other aspects of the sham MBM intervention (e.g., body position, time spent listening to instructions, eyes closed) will match the active MBM.

Interventions

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Active MBM

The MBM is designed to be applied for 20 minutes per session daily for two weeks. The recording will instruct participants to close their eyes, connect to the openness of one's minds, and mindfully maintain and deepen the connection through breathing with more openness and awareness. The MBM intervention will include three recordings that gradually take the participant into a more profound meditation practice. Participants will be instructed to listen to Meditation 1 for the first three days of the intervention, then switch to Meditation 2 for days 4-6 and Meditation 3 for the remainder of the 2-week intervention. The participants will be asked to practice meditation for eight weeks (6 weeks after the initial two weeks of MBM practice).

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Sham MBM

The sham MBM intervention was also recorded. The sham recording will instruct participants to relax and take deep breaths every 3 minutes without the specific mindfulness-based instructions (e.g., practicing mindful attention to the breath in a non-evaluative manner). All other aspects of the sham MBM intervention (e.g., body position, time spent listening to instructions, eyes closed) will match the active MBM.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

1. aged 50 years older
2. intact cognition (examined by the Mini-Mental State Exam, ≥ 24)
3. experiencing moderate low back pain daily or almost every day at least the previous three months (≥3 out of 10 on numeric rating scale \[NRS\])
4. able to speak and read English
5. not intent to change medication regimens for pain throughout the trial

Exclusion Criteria

1. serious underlying illness (e.g., malignant neoplasms, bloodborne illness, low blood platelet count, been in chemotherapy)
2. psychosis
3. function limitation precluded the meditation practice
4. participated meditation program before
5. no access to the internet
Minimum Eligible Age

50 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

89 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Florida State University

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Jie Chen, PhD, RN

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

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Florida State University

Tallahassee, Florida, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Jie Chen

Role: CONTACT

(850) 645-0657

Facility Contacts

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Sharon Liebrich

Role: primary

850-645-6887

Other Identifiers

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STUDY00004032

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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