Efficacy of Pain InterventiON with dEep brain stimulation neuromodulation - EPIONE (EPIONE)

Research summary

Chronic (long lasting) pain is common with moderate to severe disabling pain affecting between 10.4 to 14.3% of the UK population. It is frequently associated with damage to nerves or the brain, this is called neuropathic pain. Chronic neuropathic pain can occur after strokes in up to 20% of stroke survivors (Central Post Stroke Pain, CPSP) and this form of pain can be difficult to treat with standard medical therapies. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery involves the insertion into the brain of electrical leads connected to a pacemaker device similar to that used in the heart (an internal pulse generator). This allows specific regions of the brain to be electrically stimulated, allowing controlled changes in the function of brain networks. In this study, brain regions associated with pain perception will be stimulated. These regions together are known as the central pain network, and alterations to this network have been proposed to underlie CPSP. DBS is an intervention that allows clinicians to intervene in the functions of this network with the aim of improving pain symptoms. However, DBS is a surgical procedure with risks and a financial cost. Moreover, there is very little randomised controlled trial evidence, the gold standard of medical evidence, that the intervention works for pain. We propose to undertake such a trial to study if this form of intervention is effective at treating pain in stroke patients.

Principal Investigator

Prof Alexander Green

Contact us

Email: crndirectdelivery team@ouh.nhs.uk

IRAS number

273330