Comparative efficacy of a single-session “Empowered Relief” videoconference-delivered group intervention for chronic pain: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background Chronic pain is naturally aversive and often distressing for patients. Pain coping and self-regulatory skills have been shown to effectively reduce pain-related distress and other symptoms. In this trial, the primary goal is to pilot test the comparative efficacy of a single-session videoconference-delivered group pain education class to a waitlist control among patients with chronic pain. Methods Our study is a randomized clinical trial pilot testing the superiority of our 2-h single-session videoconference-delivered group pain education class against a waitlist control. We will enroll 120 adult patients with mixed etiology chronic pain and randomize 1:1 to one of the two study arms. We hypothesize superiority for the pain education class for bolstering pain and symptom management. Team researchers masked to treatment assignment will assess the outcomes up to 3 months post-treatment. Discussion This study aims to test the utility of a single-session videoconference-delivered group pain education class to improve self-regulation of pain and pain-related outcomes. Findings from our project have the potential to significantly reduce barriers to effective psychological treatment for pain, optimizing the delivery of increasingly vital online and remote-delivered intervention options. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.govNCT04546685. Registered on 04 September 2020.

Efficacy of a Single-Session “Empowered Relief” Zoom-Delivered Group Intervention for Chronic Pain: Randomized Controlled Trial Conducted During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Although a growing body of research exists on the efficacy of ER for chronic and acute pain management [ 12 , 33 , 36 , 52 ], the use of Zoom as a platform to deliver behavioral medicine for chronic pain, particularly single-session treatment, remains novel and understudied. In addition, the extant literature on digital behavioral health research has reported participant treatment engagement rates ranging from 20% to 60% [ 33 , 84 - 86 ].…”

“…The study coordinator (LGC) was unblinded to the individual study arm assignments and was not involved in any data analyses. The study protocol was reviewed and approved [ 52 ].…”

Mechanism of online emotional support accompany group for stress: The role of social support

“…During the pandemic, a study proved that a single online intervention was able to reduce depression symptoms in adolescents under pandemic ( Schleider et al, 2022 ). In a study of chronic patients, online single-intervention groups were found to reduce negative emotions such as pain and anxiety, and depression in chronic patients ( Ziadni et al, 2021 ). A study found that a single online group psychological counseling session can effectively provide psychological support for the public and relieve psychological pressure under COVID-19 ( Ni et al, 2022 ).…”

Psychological Treatment for Chronic Pain: Improving Access and Integration

“…For instance, effective single-session behavioral treatments could help address the needs of a population with pain. Indeed, four randomized trials have shown that singlesession treatments can substantially improve multidimensional chronic-pain outcomes (Carty et al, 2019;Darnall et al, 2021;Ziadni et al, 2018;Ziadni et al, 2021;Ziadni et al, in press). Clearly, brief interventions will be insufficient for some patients; however, they may be particularly convenient and feasible for many others.…”