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Pregabalin Versus Pulsed Radiofrequency Ablation for Treatment of Chronic Post-thoracotomy Pain

Pregabalin Versus Pulsed Radiofrequency Ablation of Dorsal Root Ganglion for Treatment of Chronic Post Thoracotomy Pain Syndrome

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT03942796
Enrollment
30
Registered
2019-05-08
Start date
2018-01-01
Completion date
2019-10-30
Last updated
2020-09-07

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Chronic Post-thoracotomy Pain

Brief summary

Chronic Post thoracotomy pain syndrome (PTPS) is defined PTPS as pain that develops or increases in intensity after a thoracotomy and persists beyond the healing process, that's to say at least 3 months after the initiating event. The pain has to be localized to the site of incision or, projected to the innervation territory of a nerve situated in this area or referred to a dermatome or Head's zone (after surgery/injury to deep somatic and visceral tissues The incidence of PTPS is 57% and 47% of patients at 3 and 6 months after thoracotomy, respectively. Management of PTPS begins with prevention. Preventive strategies are based on multimodal preemptive and intraoperative analgesia. Treatment of PTPS is either pharmacologic treatment which is systematically initiated by first line drugs including tricyclic anti-depressants (TCA), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI), gabapentinoids. Second-line treatments include topical lidocaine, capsaicin, and weak opioid analgesics (tramadol). Third line treatments consist of strong opioids (oxycodone, morphine) and subcutaneous botilinium toxin injection. Other therapies for management of CPTP include such modalities as transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), Spinal cord and peripheral nerve stimulation, acupuncture and neurolysis using pulsed radiofrequency for intercostal nerve or dorsal root ganglio and cryoneurolysis for intercostal nerve. The mode of action of pulsed RF is not well-understood, but may include inhibition of excitatory C-fiber responses by repetitive, burst-like stimulation of A-delta fibers, global reduction of evoked synaptic activity and minor structural changes in nerve tissue; elicited by alterations in the function of the blood-nerve barrier, fibroblast activation and collagen deposition.

Detailed description

The aim of the work is to evaluate the effect of oral pregabalin and pulsed radiofrequency ablation (PRF) ablation of the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) in the treatment of chronic post thoracotomy pain syndrome, using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score.

Interventions

DRUGlyrica, vronogabic (pregabalin)

Patients would receive oral pregabalin is initiated at a dose of 75 mg twice daily and titrated up to 600 mg as tolerated by the patient at 1,2,3 weeks

PROCEDUREpulsed radiofrequency ablation of the dorsal root ganglion under fluroscopic guidance/ radiofrequency neurolysis/ radiofrequency denervation device name: Neuro Therm TM 1100

Patients would receive pulsed radiofrequency ablation of dorsal root ganglion using the following settings: 2-Hz frequency, 20-ms pulses in a 1 second cycle, 120 second duration and 42°C temperature. Impedance ranges between 150 and 400 Ohms at all levels under fluroscopic guidance. For each pulsed RF application, the procedure will be repeated 4 times, for a total duration of 8 minutes

Sponsors

Mansoura University
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* ASA physical status III or IV * Persistent pain score ≥ 5 on VAS for 3 months or more, not responding to traditional OTC analgesics

Exclusion criteria

* Patient refusal * The presence of pathology that could account for a majority of persistent symptoms (e.g. recurrent cancer) * coagulopathy * Uncooperative patients

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Change in the severity of painday 1, 3 monthsmeasured by 11 point VAS score from 0 to 10. the patient is asked to report the severity of his pain in which 0 represents no pain and 10 is the maximum pain. VAS below 5 is considered a successful outcome of the treatment method and VAS score ≥ 5 is considered a failure outcome. In case of a failure outcome, patients will be given oral acetaminophen 500 mg every 8 hours and/or oral ibuprofen 400 mg every 8-12 hours and the need for rescue analgesia will be recorded. is measured by 11 point VAS score from 0 to 10. the patient is asked to report the severity of his pain in which 0 represents no pain and 10 is the maximum pain. VAS below 5 is considered a success outcome of the treatment method and VAS score ≥ 5 is considered a failure outcome. In case of a failure outcome, patients will be given oral acetaminophen 500 mg every 8 hours and/or oral ibuprofen 400 mg every 8-12 hours and the need for rescue analgesia will be recorded.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
the number of patients who needed rescue analgesia2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsthe Cumulative use of rescue analgesics
the number of patients who developed somnolence as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthssomnolence or excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) refers to the tendency to fall asleep in inappropriate settings.
the number of patients who developed dizziness as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsa sensation of unsteadiness accompanied by a feeling of movement within the head
Patient satisfaction2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsUsing score including 5-Excellent, 4-Very Good, 3-Good, 2-Fair, and 1-Poor
The number of patients who developed imbalance as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsthe state of being out of equilibrium or out of proportion
The number of patients who developed constipation as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsa condition in which there is difficulty in emptying the bowels, usually associated with hardened stool.
The number of patients who developed pneumothorax as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsan abnormal collection of air in the pleural space between the lung and the chest wall, diagnosed by chest xray
The number of patients who developed nausea as a side effect of treatmentimmediately after the intervention, 2weeks, 1, 2, 3 monthsa feeling of sickness with an inclination to vomit.

Countries

Egypt

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026