Testing Pain Responses to Study Treatments
Treatments studied
Part of Heart & circulation, Pain clinical trials.
This research study tests how different medications affect pain sensations in healthy volunteers. Researchers use safe, temporary pain-inducing methods (like ice water and heat) during screening and the study to measure how your body responds, helping them understand pain better.
Summary written for real people, not researchers, by Clin2.
Who can take part
- Be at least 18 years old and fluent in English
- Be willing to undergo screening tests that involve temporary pain (ice water immersion, capsaicin cream on skin, heat exposure)
- Have skin type on the Fitzpatrick scale between 2 and 5 (your skin tone category)
- Not be pregnant, breastfeeding, or planning pregnancy during the study
- Be able to stop smoking and certain medications for the duration of the study
- Have no serious medical conditions, recent mental health crises, or substance abuse history
Quick eligibility check
Answer a few plain-language questions, based on this study's own requirements, to get a preliminary sense of fit.
Similar studies
Other trials that look related to this one.
This trial tests whether vasopressin, a nasal spray, changes how your brain processes pain. You will receive either the spray or a placebo and have an MRI scan to see brain activity.
This study tests whether people can feel less pain when they know they are receiving a “placebo” (a treatment with no active pain-relieving medicine). It’s done in healthy adults by triggering short-lasting pain in a controlled way to see how the placebo effect changes pain feelings.
This study looks at how beliefs, mood, and social factors affect how people express and judge pain. It mainly uses pain/heat testing and—if chosen—brain scans to understand why pain reports can differ between people.
This study tests how people sense heat and pain, and how the brain and emotions may influence that experience. It is designed for healthy adults and may involve training sessions and (for some parts) MRI scanning.
This is a screening study to find healthy volunteers who may join future research on complementary health approaches at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. You’ll be checked to make sure you’re in good general health and don’t have conditions that could affect pain or heat sensitivity tests.
This study looks at how accurately people can describe their pain and related symptoms. It may help researchers improve how pain is measured in future studies.
Hear when a new Acute Pain trial opens
We’ll email you when one opens — at most once a week, no account needed, unsubscribe anytime.