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Completed

NCT Number: NCT04724694

Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain to Improve Functioning Among Veterans

Chronic pain is very common among primary care Veterans and can seriously impact overall patient functioning and well-being. Currently, behavioral treatments for pain management are not often provided in primary care because they are designed to be delivered in specialty care settings, such as chronic pain clinics. To address this gap in care, the proposed study will test if Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain (Brief CBT-CP) is an effective treatment. Therefore, the first objective of the proposed study is to conduct a randomized controlled trial of Brief CBT-CP compared to primary care treatment as usual to assess treatment effectiveness by examining changes in pain-related physical activity interference, psychological distress, pain intensity, and other related outcomes. 178 eligible participants will be randomized into either Brief CBT-CP and primary care treatment as usual or primary care treatment as usual only. Eligible Veterans will include those with chronic musculoskeletal pain and pain-related functional impairment identified from primary care. Participants assigned to Brief CBT-CP will receive six sessions of treatment in 30-minute appointments. This intervention will include education and goal setting, activities and pacing, relaxation skills, cognitive coping, and relapse prevention. Assessments will include validated self-report measures that will take place at pre-treatment (baseline), mid-treatment, post-treatment, and at 6-month follow-up. The second objective of this study is examine the mechanisms by which Brief CBT-CP leads to improvement in patient outcomes. Statistical analysis will reveal if changes pain self-efficacy (i.e., perceived ability to manage pain or engage in usual activities despite being in pain) and catastrophizing (i.e., unhelpful, negative though patterns about pain and pain management) lead to improvements in patient functioning. The third objective of this study will be to explore perceptions of Brief CBT-CP among patients who experience significant improvement in outcomes compared to those who did not experience improvement. Participants will include up to 40 patients who were treated with Brief CBT-CP. Participants will be interviewed about key components of the treatment and their perception of effectiveness. Interview data will be compared to the results of statistical analysis to help understand the mechanisms by which Brief CBT-CP is effective or identify areas for improvement. Results of this study will provide information needed to determine if Brief CBT-CP should be widely disseminated across VA primary care clinics.

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Key information

Conditions

Musculoskeletal Pain Chronic Pain Muscular Diseases Musculoskeletal Diseases Neurologic Manifestations Pain Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Signs and Symptoms

Age range

18 year–79 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

VA Western New York Healthcare System, Buffalo, NY

Buffalo, New York, 14215-1129, United States

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Veterans age >=18 and <=79 years
  • Conversant in English
  • A diagnosis of musculoskeletal pain of >three months
  • PEG score of >= 4 on pain intensity item and both interference items at screening
  • BPI interference and pain intensity score of at least 4.0 at baseline
  • If currently prescribed pain medication (other than topicals or NSAIDS), a stable dose in the last two months
  • If currently prescribed psychiatric medicine, a stable dose in the last two months
  • Established history of VA primary care utilization (i.e., at least one primary care visit in the past year)

Exclusion criteria

  • Current or prior (past 12 months) engagement in psychotherapy or behavioral intervention provided by behavioral medicine services or specialty mental health for chronic pain.
  • Medication management through psychiatric services or an on-going course of mental health services for issues other than chronic pain are not excluded.
  • Endorsement of imminent suicide risk
  • Current significant substance use problems (i.e., alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines, or other drugs)
  • Unstable psychiatric status (e.g., active psychosis, current mania)
  • Diagnosed with major or minor neurocognitive disorder
  • Unwilling to have treatment sessions audio recorded
  • Pending disability claim
  • Recent or planned surgical/interventional procedure for pain

Treatment and study plan

Brief CBT for Chronic Pain

Behavioral

Brief CBT-CP is a manualized protocol that includes six, 30-minute sessions over the course of 6-12 weeks. Session one focuses on foundational pain education and the development of treatment goals. Session two emphasizes balanced engagement in physical activity and pleasurable events. Session three emphasizes skills training for easily implemented relaxation techniques. Sessions four and five focus on recognizing and modifying unhelpful thoughts that negatively impact pain. Session six focuses on relapse prevention and independent implementation of CBT-CP skills following treatment.

Other names: Brief CBT-CP

Treatment as Usual

Other

Participants assigned to TAU will receive standard medical care from their primary care provider including pain medications, brief advice (e.g., use of relative rest, application of heat or ice, other self-care strategies), or referral to pain-related adjunctive interventions (e.g., physical therapy), as indicated.

Other names: Primary care treatment as usual

Primary outcomes

  1. Brief Pain Inventory -- Interference Subscale (BPI-I) to Assess 12 Week Follow-up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This measure is a validated 7-item subscale that evaluates pain-related interference in daily activities and social and occupational functioning. Average scores range from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating higher pain-related interference.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Brief Pain Inventory -- Pain Intensity Subscale (BPI-P) to Assess 12 Week Follow-up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This measure is a validated 4-item subscale that evaluates pain intensity. Average scores range from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating worse pain intensity.

  2. Patient Health Questionnaire -- 9 (PHQ-9) to Assess 12 Week Follow-up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 9-item measure of depressive symptoms is validated for use in primary care. Total scores range from 0 to 27, with higher scores indicating more depression symptoms.

  3. World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) to Assess Physical Health at 12 Week Follow up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 26-item abbreviated version of the full-length WHOQOL measure evaluates quality of life in several domains such as social relationships and satisfaction with person-environment interactions. Scoring is by subscales representing four domains (i.e., physical health, psychological, social relationship, and environment). Transformed mean scores for each domain range from four to 20, with higher scores indicating greater quality of life in the respective domain.

  4. World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) to Assess Psychological Quality of Life at 12 Week Follow up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 26-item abbreviated version of the full-length WHOQOL measure evaluates quality of life in several domains such as social relationships and satisfaction with person-environment interactions. Scoring is by subscales representing four domains (i.e., physical health, psychological, social relationship, and environment). Transformed mean scores for each domain range from four to 20, with higher scores indicating greater quality of life in the respective domain.

  5. World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) to Assess Social Relationships at 12 Week Follow up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 26-item abbreviated version of the full-length WHOQOL measure evaluates quality of life in several domains such as social relationships and satisfaction with person-environment interactions. Scoring is by subscales representing four domains (i.e., physical health, psychological, social relationship, and environment). Transformed mean scores for each domain range from four to 20, with higher scores indicating greater quality of life in the respective domain.

  6. World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) to Assess Environmental Health at 12 Week Follow up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 26-item abbreviated version of the full-length WHOQOL measure evaluates quality of life in several domains such as social relationships and satisfaction with person-environment interactions. Scoring is by subscales representing four domains (i.e., physical health, psychological, social relationship, and environment). Transformed mean scores for each domain range from four to 20, with higher scores indicating greater quality of life in the respective domain.

  7. Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities - Short Form (APSRA) to Assess 12 Week Follow up

    Time frame: 12-weeks

    This 8-item measure was developed to evaluate one's perceived ability to perform usual social roles and activities. Total scores range from eight to 40, with higher scores indicating better ability to participate in usual activities.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

VA Office of Research and Development

Fed

Registry information

Official study title

Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain to Improve Functional Outcomes Among Primary Care Veterans

Important dates

Study start
2021
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
Jan 26, 2021
Registry last updated
Mar 17, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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