pain perception
Conditions
Interventions
Group 1: Control group: single dose of inactive placebo (oral)
Group 2: Group receiving single dose of 40 mg propranolol (oral)
Sponsors
Klinische Neurowissenschaften und translationale Schmerzforschung, Klinik für Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Essen
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria: - Voluntary, informed consent to participate in the study - Normal or corrected-to-normal vision - Fluent in German
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria: - Past or present neurological disorders, such as pain disorders (e.g., chronic migraine, back pain, irritable bowel syndrome), brain or spinal cord injuries (e.g., traumatic brain injury, cerebral hemorrhage), epilepsy, sleep disorders, - Past or present psychiatric disorders, such as depression, schizophrenia, addiction, or personality disorders - Chronic or acute pain (e.g., headaches, back pain, nerve pain; pain that could indicate an undiagnosed pain disorder) - Skin diseases (e.g., neurodermatitis), skin damage (e.g., acute sunburn, scars), tattoos, open wounds or inflammation of the skin, rash or eczema at the stimulation site - Hypersensitivity to propranolol hydrochloride, other beta-receptor blockers, or any of the other ingredients - Serious internal medical conditions in the past or present, such as diabetes, neoplasms, kidney or liver disease, and cardiovascular disease (especially contraindications to study medication; manifest heart failure, known AV block or sick sinus syndrome, bradycardia below 50 beats/minute, hypotension below 90/60 mmHg. Particular attention is paid to those diseases that are listed as contraindications to the study medication (bronchial asthma, pheochromocytoma, tendency to hypoglycemia, peripheral circulatory disorders). - Known thyroid dysfunction - Presence of an acute infection (e.g., cough, cold, diarrhea) - Alcohol consumption on the day of the study or the day before - Drug use (use of cannabis, amphetamines, cocaine, benzodiazepines, morphine/opiates) within the last 3 months (a urine drug test will be performed) - Regular medication use (especially regular analgesic use; excluding dietary supplements and hormonal contraception as well as occasional use of antiallergic drugs and medication use as needed—except on the day of the study) - Use of pain medication (e.g., NSAIDs) within the last 3 days - Allergy to any component of the medication - Surgical procedure under anesthesia within the last 3 months - Participation in other medication-related studies within the last 3 months - Participation in an experimental or clinical study involving medication use within the last 3 months - Previous participation in a similar study - For women: Pregnancy/breastfeeding (a urine pregnancy test will be performed. Self-report for breastfeeding) - Abnormal pain or sensitivity to heat stimulation on the wrist defined as: Pain threshold > 48.5°C - Color blindness/color vision deficiency (e.g., red-green weakness)
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| We define two co-primary endpoints: 1) Change in expected pain across the different conditions (placebo, nocebo, control), assessed on a visual analogue scale (VAS, range 0–100), over time in the test phase 2) Change in experienced pain in response to the heat stimuli across the different conditions (placebo, nocebo, control), assessed on a visual analogue scale (VAS, range 0–100), over time in the test phase | — |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Additional (secondary) endpoints, which will be used as manipulation check and/or covariates: 1) Expeced pain in the conditioning phase (VAS 0-100) 2) Perceived pain in the conditioning phase (VAS 0-100) 3) Serum propranolol levels in the propranolol group | — |
Countries
Germany
Contacts
Public ContactBelkis Ezgi Arikan
Klinische Neurowissenschaften und translationale Schmerzforschung, Klinik für Neurologie, Universitätsklinikum Essen
Outcome results
None listed