Differences in Pain Processing Between Men and Women

NCT05031286 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: NWR
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 66
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Many chronic pain conditions show clear differences between between men and women, such as reported pain intensities or treatment effects, with chronic pain conditions being generally more frequent in women. Yet, the underlying mechanisms causing these differences are poorly understood. Central sensitization (CS) is considered one important mechanism in pain patients which differs between female and male patients. The central hypothesis is that already in the healthy population CS processes are more pronounced in women than in men.

Conditions

Central Sensitisation

Keywords

central sensitisation; central sensitization; nociception; withdrawal reflex; heat pain; secondary hyperalgesia

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Change in spatial extent of mechanical hypersensitivity after intervention w.r.t. baseline

  Mapping of hypersensitivity in cm2 of sensitized skin area using two quantitative sensory testing tools (256mN von Frey filament and 200-400mN brush) before and after intervention

  10-20 minutes before intervention (baseline) and 20-30 minutes after intervention

• Changes to the nociceptive withdrawal reflex (NWR) after intervention w.r.t. baseline

  Repetitive suprathreshold elicitation of the NWR to monitor its characteristics (such as magnitude and number of responses) before and after intervention

  5-10 minutes before intervention (baseline) and 30-35 minutes after intervention

Study Arms (1)

Experimental Arm

EXPERIMENTAL

Other: Cutaneous thermal stimuli

Interventions

Cutaneous thermal stimuli OTHER

Application of thermal stimuli of different intensities to the skin

Experimental Arm

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 40 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• good general health
• able to give informed consent

You may not qualify if:

• pain complaints for more than two consecutive days over the past three months
• any major medical or psychiatric condition (e.g. heart disease, major depressive disorder)
• any chronic pain condition
• inability to follow study instructions
• consumption of stimulants, drugs, or analgesics within the past 24 hours
• scar tissue or generally reduced sensitivity in the designated testing site areas

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Balgrist University Hospital: lead

Study Sites (1)

Balgrist Campus

Zurich, 8008, Switzerland

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Guekos A, Saxer J, Salinas Gallegos D, Schweinhardt P. Healthy women show more experimentally induced central sensitization compared with men. Pain. 2024 Jun 1;165(6):1413-1424. doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003144. Epub 2024 Jan 11.

  PMID: 38231588 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Hyperalgesia

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Somatosensory Disorders; Sensation Disorders; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Officials

• Petra Schweinhardt, MD, PhD

  Department of Chiropractic Medicine, Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zurich

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Head of Research at the Department of Chiropractic Medicine

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 11, 2021
• First Posted: September 1, 2021
• Study Start: May 1, 2021
• Primary Completion: December 31, 2022
• Study Completion: December 31, 2022
• Last Updated: April 11, 2023

Record last verified: 2023-04

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CH (1)