Exploring Movement and Pain in Older Adults

This study is looking at how short periods of light walking, compared to continuous sitting, affect pain in older adults with ongoing muscle and joint pain (musculoskeletal pain). Researchers want to see if these activities change your general body pain, pain during movement, and how your body naturally handles pain. You might be able to join if you are between 55 and 85 years old, live in the community, and have experienced musculoskeletal pain in the past month. The study aims to enroll 40 participants and is currently unclear about its recruitment status. The main goals are to measure changes in how your body responds to pain (Mechanical Temporal Summation of Pain and Conditioned Pain Modulation) and pain during a chair stand test after either intermittent light walking or uninterrupted sitting.

Study design
This is an interventional study, meaning participants will receive specific activities. It plans to enroll 40 participants, but the phase is not specified.
What's involved
You will attend two study sessions. The first session will last 3 hours and the second 2.5 hours, taking place at the National Institute of Sport Fitness.
Compensation
Not stated in the trial record.
Follow-up
Pain measurements will be taken immediately after the 1-hour experimental conditions.

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NCT06886906

Exploring the Acute and Dynamic Relationships Between Movement and Pain in Older Adults With Musculoskeletal Pain

Recruiting
NAAges 55–85Interventional
Indiana University
~40 participants
Updated 2026-04-17 on ClinicalTrials.gov
What's tested:Intermittent light walkinguninterrupted sitting

At a glance

Recruiting sites
1 of 1 listed site is recruiting right now
RecruitingSuspended, closed, or not yet open
What they're measuring
Mechanical Temporal Summation of Pain (TS)
Measured over Pre and post the 1-hour experimental conditions
+2 more outcomes measured
Older People
Pain
1 sites across 1 states
Indiana1
  • Kelly Marie Naugle · PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR · School of Health and Human Sciences, IUPUI

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Eligibility criteria

Inclusion

Community-dwelling men and women
Answer yes to the following question: Have you experienced any musculoskeletal pain (pain affecting joints, bones, ligaments, tendons or muscles) in the past month?

Exclusion

Cardiovascular issues such as uncontrolled blood pressure over 150/99 mmHg, heart failure, or history of acute myocardial infarction;
Angina in the last month (squeezing, pressure, heaviness, tightness, or pain in chest)
Serious systemic disease or condition (e.g., severe osteoarthritis, injury) that restricts normal daily activities
Neurological disease (e.g., Parkinson's Disease, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy)
Serious psychiatric conditions (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder) or hospitalization within the preceding year for psychiatric illness
Known peripheral neuropathy
Chronic opioid use (defined as ≥ 90 days)
Unable to walk for 6 minutes without assistive devices
  • Mechanical Temporal Summation of Pain (TS)Pre and post the 1-hour experimental conditions

    TS will be administered on the back of the left hand. First, a single pinprick stimulus using a von Frey filament of 6.65 Mn or 300 g will be applied to the body site. Participants will rate the perceived pain intensity using a numeric rating scale of 0 (no pain at all) to 100 (worst pain imaginable). Then, a series of 10 pinprick stimuli (6.65 Mn) will be administered at a rate of 1 Hz, applied to the body site within an area of 1 cm2. The temporal summation value will be calculated as the difference between the first and last stimuli.

  • Conditioned Pain ModulationPre and post the 1-hour experimental conditions

    CPM will be assessed by determining the ability of a cold water bath (conditioning stimulus) to diminish pressure pain thresholds (PPTs) and temporal summation (TS) (test stimuli) applied at a separate body site. For the CPM trials, PPTs and TS will be measured pre and post a conditioning stimulus. Conditioning stimulus: At least 4 minutes will separate the pre pain assessments (i.e., PPT, TS) and the initiation of the conditioning stimulation, during which subjects will sit quietly. Then, participants will immerse their right hand up to the wrist in a cold water bath maintained at 10oC for up to 1 minute or until they report intolerable pain. The dependent variable for the CPM test will be the change in the test stimuli (PPT and TS) following the conditioning stimulus.

  • Movement-evoked pain during the 30-second chair stand testWill be administered immediately after the 1-hour experimental conditions.

    This test will be administered using a folding chair without arms, placed against a wall to prevent it from moving during the test. The test begins with the subject seated in the middle of the chair, feet at an angle slightly back from the knees, with one foot slightly in front of the other to help maintain balance when standing. Arms will be crossed at the wrists and held against the chest. At the signal of "go", subjects will rise to a full stand and then return back to the initial position. The subjects will be encouraged to complete as many full stands as possible within a 30-s time limit. Participants will rate their current bodily pain on a 0 to 10 numeric rating scale (NRS), with 0 indicating "No pain" and 10 indicating "Pain as bad as you can imagine". Participants will rate their bodily pain before, during, and after the chair stand test as a measure of movement evoked pain.