NCT07537114

Brief Summary

The purpose of this research study is to compare muscle activation, changes in pain sensitivity, and brain function, between different walking conditions, including walking to music, walking to metronome, and walking without music or metronome.

Trial Health

65
Monitor

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
20

participants targeted

Target at below P25 for not_applicable knee-osteoarthritis

Timeline
11mo left

Started Aug 2026

Status
not yet recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

April 6, 2026

Completed
11 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

April 17, 2026

Completed
4 months until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

August 1, 2026

Expected
10 months until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

June 1, 2027

1 month until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

July 1, 2027

Last Updated

April 22, 2026

Status Verified

April 1, 2026

Enrollment Period

10 months

First QC Date

April 6, 2026

Last Update Submit

April 17, 2026

Conditions

Knee Osteoarthritis

Keywords

musicrhythmic auditory stimulationknee pain

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

  • Exercise-Induced Hypoalgesia (EIH)

    Change in pressure pain threshold (PPT) from baseline to after each walking task

    Baseline

  • medial quadriceps - medial hamstrings muscle coactivation

    Medial quadriceps-medial hamstrings muscle co-activation in each walking task will be assessed using surface electromyography

    Baseline

Secondary Outcomes (3)

  • Medial quadriceps- medial gastrocnemius muscle coactivation

    Baseline

  • lateral quadriceps- lateral hamstrings muscle coactivation

    Baseline

  • lateral quadriceps - lateral gastrocnemius muscle coactivation

    Baseline

Other Outcomes (4)

  • Prefrontal cortex activation

    Baseline

  • Supplementary Motor Area activation

    Baseline

  • Auditory-motor synchronization

    Baseline

  • +1 more other outcomes

Study Arms (1)

Rhythmic auditory stimulation during walking

EXPERIMENTAL

All participants will be exposed to different walking conditions including music, metronome, and no music or metronome

Behavioral: Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with musicBehavioral: Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with metronomeBehavioral: Control

Interventions

ControlBEHAVIORAL

Walking to no music or metronome

Rhythmic auditory stimulation during walking
Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with metronomeBEHAVIORAL

walking to rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with metronome

Rhythmic auditory stimulation during walking
Rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with musicBEHAVIORAL

Walking to rhythmic Auditory Stimulation with music

Rhythmic auditory stimulation during walking

Eligibility Criteria

Age50 Years - 85 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersNo
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Have activity related pain
  • Experience morning knee stiffness ≤ 30 minutes
  • Knee pain on most days for 3 months or more
  • Able to walk at least 20 minutes with assistance
  • Average overall knee pain severity of ≥= 4 on a 11-point numeric rating scale during previous week
  • BMI ≤ 40
  • Able to communicate using English at a level to understand the study procedures and informed consent

You may not qualify if:

  • Contraindications to exercise
  • Joint replacement in either hip, knee, or ankle
  • History of other disease that may involve the index joint including inflammatory joint disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, seronegative spondyloarthropathy (eg, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease related arthropathy), crystalline disease (eg, gout or pseudogout), lupus erythematosus, knee joint infections, Paget's disease affecting the knee, or knee joint tumors.
  • Previous knee osteotomy in either knee
  • Other health conditions that impact motor functioning or prevent participation (e.g., stroke, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Multiple Sclerosis, diabetic neuropathy, etc.)
  • Corticosteroid or hyaluronic acid injections in either knee in the previous 3 months
  • Pregnancy (self-report)
  • Suspected or known drugs or alcohol abuse
  • Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) score \< 24
  • Hearing impairments
  • Pain in lower back or legs that is greater than knee pain

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Osteoarthritis, Knee

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

OsteoarthritisArthritisJoint DiseasesMusculoskeletal DiseasesRheumatic Diseases

Study Officials

  • Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD

    Boston University Charles River Campus

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Deepak Kumar, PT, PhD

CONTACT

617-358-3037kumard@bu.edu

Yiwen Yang, DPT

CONTACT

ywyang@bu.edu

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
Associate Professor

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

April 6, 2026

First Posted

April 17, 2026

Study Start (Estimated)

August 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

July 1, 2027

Last Updated

April 22, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04