Assessment of Pressure Pain Threshold (PPT) and Conditioned Pain Modulation (CPM) After Effect in Patients With and Without Tennis Elbow (TE)

Recruiting now · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Tennis Elbow, Health Adult Subjects, Lateral Elbow Tendinopathy (Tennis Elbow), Pressure Pain Threshold (PPT), Conditioned Pain Modulation (CPM)

In brief

This study at Hashemite University looks at how people with and without tennis elbow (AKA lateral elbow tendinopathy) feel pressure pain and how their bodies briefly "turn down" pain after a cold stimulus. Participants complete brief questionnaires (basic demographics without names, a tennis-elbow symptom form, and a physical-activity form) and then have their pressure-pain threshold (PPT) tested with a handheld device that slowly increases pressure on standard spots near the elbow and wrist; they say when it first becomes painful. To test the body's built-in anti-pain system (conditioned pain modulation, CPM), one hand is placed in ice water (the cold-pressor task) and PPT is measured again at set times (before, during, and after the cold stimulus) to see how much pain sensitivity changes and how long that change lasts. Both PPT reliability and CPM after effect are measured in this study. The study findings may help improve future assessment and treatment of musculoskeletal pain conditions.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07178288

Run by

The Hashemite University

People needed

38

Starts

2025-09-10

Expected to finish

2026-06-30

Last updated by the study team

2026-06-26

Who can join

Age: any, up to 60. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Patients with Tennis Elbow confirmed at initial assessment by the Primary Investigator (PI)
• Unilateral elbow pain > 6 weeks duration reproduced on at least two of the following tests:
• Palpation of the lateral epicondyle
• Isometric testing of the wrist extensors
• Middle finger extension test
• Passive stretch of wrist extensors
• Resisted hand gripping using a dynamometer
• Upper limb neurodynamic test-radial nerve bias (ULNDT-RN)

You may not qualify if…

• History of chronic pain conditions (e.g. fibromyalgia, irritable bowel
• syndrome, temporomandibular dysfunction, migraines)
• Neurological or sensory dysfunction (especially in the upper limbs)
• History of chronic musculoskeletal pain (e.g. arthritis, chronic low back
• pain)
• Contraindications to cold application (i.e. Reynaud's disease, diabetes)
• Current or long-term use of pain medication or anti-depressants
• Healthy Group The asymptomatic group included adults (18-65 years) without pain (acute or chronic) at least 3 months before the experimental sessions.

Where it is running

• The Hashemite University, Department of Physical Therapy; Community Rehabilitation Center Clinics — Zarqa, Zarqa Governorate, Jordan (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.