Closed-Loop Deep Brain Stimulation for Refractory Chronic Pain
Eligible age
22–80 yrs
Accepts
All genders
Locations
1 state
Healthy volunteers
No
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About this study
Chronic pain affects 1 in 4 US adults, and many cases are resistant to almost any treatment. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) holds promise as a new option for patients suffering from treatment-resistant chronic pain, but traditional approaches target only brain regions involved in one aspect of the pain experience and provide continuous 24/7 brain stimulation which may lose effect over time. By developing new technology that targets multiple, complimentary brain regions in an adaptive fashion, the investigators will test a new therapy for chronic pain that has potential for better, more enduring analgesia.
Sponsor: University of California, San Francisco
You may qualify if…
- ✓ 1. Age 22-80 years old
- ✓ 2. Clinical diagnosis of a refractory chronic pain syndrome including
- ✓ 1. post-traumatic pain syndromes (e.g. root avulsions, nerve crush injuries, spinal cord injury)
- ✓ 2. postsurgical pain syndromes (e.g., postmastectomy syndrome, post-thoracotomy syndrome, phantom limb pain, post-surgical spinal pain)
- ✓ 3. postherpetic neuralgia
- ✓ 4. complex regional pain syndrome
- ✓ 5. atypical facial pain
- ✓ 6. central pain syndromes (e.g. post-stroke pain, multiple sclerosis pain, post-radiation pain)
You may not qualify if…
- ✕ 1. Major medical co-morbidities increasing the risk of surgery including uncontrolled hypertension, coagulopathy, severe diabetes, major organ system failure, active infection or history of implant related infections, immunocompromised state or malignancy with \< 5 years life expectancy
- ✕ 2. Presence of cardiac pacemakers/defibrillators, implanted medication pumps, intra-cardiac lines, any intracranial implants (e.g., aneurysm clip, shunt, cochlear implant, electrodes) or other implanted stimulators not compatible with RC+S system
- ✕ 3. Pregnancy or breast feeding: all women of child bearing potential will have a negative urine pregnancy test prior to undergoing their surgical procedure.
- ✕ 4. Active depression (BDI \> 20), Suicide attempt \</= 12 months or imminent suicide risk, or other untreated or uncontrolled psychiatric illness that evaluating psychiatrist would recommend exclusion of patient after neuropsychiatric evaluation.
- ✕ 5. History of substance abuse in past 3 years
- ✕ 6. Inability to stop anticoagulation or platelet anti-aggregation therapy for surgery and recovery.
- ✕ 7. Implantable hardware not compatible with MRI or with the study.
- ✕ 8. MR abnormalities that suggest an alternative diagnosis or contraindicate surgery
Where it's recruiting
San Francisco
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · NCT04144972 · last updated 2025-07-08