Skip to main content
OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT03680287

Effects of Sleep Disruption on Drug Response

The central scientific premise of the proposed study is that sleep disruption (SD) will influence individuals' subjective response to blinded medication administration. The investigators further believe these responses will vary among patients who have chronic low back pain (CLBP) vs. healthy controls, and that sex will moderate effects.

The proposed study evaluates whether CLBP patients' subjective responses to study medication administration are altered by SD. The investigators focus on two outcome domains: abuse liability (i.e., drug liking and valuation) and response to pain testing.

The investigators propose a mixed between-within randomized crossover human-laboratory experiment that investigates placebo-controlled effects of study medication on 1) abuse liability metrics (Drug Liking and Monetary Valuation) and 2) response to laboratory-evoked standardized pain measures, after one night of uninterrupted sleep (US) and again after one night of SD. The investigators will recruit both CLBP patients(*) and healthy controls (N = 60).

(*) We originally aimed to accrue 60 subjects with CLBP. However, we have been granted approval by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) to reduce expectations for the target N for the CLBP cohort. We are no longer expected to recruit N=60 CLBP participants; this is a COVID-19 modification, and we are not required to re-do a power analysis.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Low Back Pain, Recurrent Back Pain Healthy Low Back Pain Neurologic Manifestations Pain Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Signs and Symptoms

Age range

18 year–60 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Phase 2

Primary location

Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Baltimore, Maryland, 21224, United States

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

General Inclusion Criteria:

  • 18-60 years old
  • Less than 2 servings/day of caffeinated beverages and willing to discontinue 3 days prior to admission.

CLBP-Specific Inclusion Criteria:

  • Have a physician-confirmed diagnosis of CLBP
  • Report chronic low back pain.

Exclusion criteria

General Exclusion Criteria:

  • BMI >40
  • Significant medical or psychiatric morbidity within 6 months or lifetime history of bipolar disorder, psychotic disorder, seizure disorder
  • Lifetime history of opioid use disorder
  • Clinically significant abnormal complete blood count or comprehensive metabolic profile
  • Any contraindicated medical condition (status asthmaticus; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; reduced respiratory function; hypotension; hypertension; impairment of hepatic, pulmonary or renal functions; myxedema or hyperthyroidism; adrenocortical insufficiency; gastrointestinal obstruction; gall bladder disease; acute alcoholism; history of convulsive disorders; history of head injury)
  • Current use of stimulants, opioids, benzodiazepines or other Central Nervous System (CNS) depressant
  • Positive toxicology screen for opioids, stimulants, or recreational drugs
  • Pregnancy or lactation
  • Significant preadmission psychological distress.

Healthy Control and CLBP-Specific Exclusion Criteria:

  • Report current medical/psychiatry history
  • Report acute painful injury (within 3 months)
  • Have a diagnosed chronic pain disorder.

Treatment and study plan

Within-subject test of blinded study medication

Drug

On the day after each sleep condition (Uninterrupted Sleep and Sleep Disruption), participants will undergo multiple injections of study medication or placebo. This is a double-blind within-subject Phase II trial. As such, study medications must remain blinded. Participants may receive a medication from one or more of the following categories: prescription stimulants, prescription benzodiazepines, prescription opioids, prescription cannabinoids, over-the-counter medications, or placebo (saline). This study uses a within-subject design, such that participants serve as participants' own control.

Primary outcomes

  1. Drug Liking as assessed by the Visual Analog Scale

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Visual Analog Scale (0-100), where 0=None and 100 = Extremely , in response to the question, "Do you like the drug?"

  2. Heat Pain Threshold

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    A thermode will gradually increase in temperature until the participant indicates when it "first feels painful". The outcome will be the temperature (degrees Celsius) at which the participant indicates they first feel pain.

  3. Suprathreshold Tonic Heat Pain

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    A painful temperature above threshold will be held tonically for a period of time, after which pain ratings are obtained on a 0-100 numerical rating scale, where 0 = "No Pain" and 100 = "Worst Pain Imaginable."

  4. Monetary Valuation of Drug as assessed by the Drug vs. Money Multiple Choice Questionnaire

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Participants are presented with an array of choices (in dollar value) which they will compare to the option of receiving study drug. They will decide for each choice whether they would take the money (at that value) or the drug they received in the session. The outcome will be the "crossover point", which is the mean of the last price that the participant selected "drug" and the first price at which the participant selected "money".

Secondary outcomes

  1. Good Drug Effects as assessed by the Visual Analog Scale

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Visual Analog Scale (0-100), where 0=None and 100 = Extremely , in response to the question, "Does the drug have any good effects?"

  2. Bad Drug Effects as assessed by the Visual Analog Scale

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Visual Analog Scale (0-100), where 0=None and 100 = Extremely , in response to the question, "Does the drug have any bad effects?"

  3. Level of "Highness" as assessed by Visual Analog Scale

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Visual Analog Scale (0-100), where 0=None and 100 = Extremely , in response to the question, "How high are you?"

  4. Feeling of Sickness as assessed by Visual Analog Scale

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    Visual Analog Scale (0-100), where 0=None and 100 = Extremely , in response to the question, "Does this drug make you feel sick?"

  5. Clinical Pain

    Time frame: up to 420 minute post-medication administration

    This will be rated on a 0-100 Numerical Rating Scale, where 0 = "No Pain" and 100 = "Worst Pain Imaginable."

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Johns Hopkins University

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2019
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
Sep 21, 2018
Registry last updated
Jul 7, 2025

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.

Related clinical trials

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.