Actively Recruiting

Phase Not Applicable
Age: 18Years +
All Genders
ID05989230

Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy for People With Persistent Pain Following Orthopedic Trauma: A Pilot Feasibility Study

Led by Johns Hopkins University · Updated on 2026-05-15

30

Participants Needed

1

Research Sites

N/A

Total Duration

On this page

Sponsors

J

Johns Hopkins University

Lead Sponsor

E

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

Collaborating Sponsor

AI-Summary

What this Trial Is About

This research aims to evaluate the feasibility of Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy (EAET) for people experiencing persistent pain after orthopedic trauma. Orthopedic trauma, such as multiple fractures or amputations, affects about 3 million people annually in the U.S., with many suffering ongoing pain and psychological distress like depression, anxiety, or PTSD months after injury. EAET is a psychological treatment designed to address these pain and mood issues by helping patients understand and express emotions linked to traumatic experiences. Participants will receive EAET through eight weekly sessions lasting about 60 minutes each. The therapy focuses on increasing awareness of difficult emotions and learning healthy ways to express them, including pain education and exercises involving imagining or real-life emotional exposure. This is a single-arm study where all participants receive the EAET intervention. During the study, participants will complete assessments before treatment, after treatment, and at follow-up points. These include questionnaires about physical and emotional health taking 20-25 minutes and sensory tests lasting about 20 minutes to evaluate pain processing. Researchers will monitor attendance, therapist fidelity, patient satisfaction, and the feasibility of recruitment, retention, and assessments over periods up to 24 months, with the treatment phase lasting 8 weeks.

CONDITIONS

Brief Title

Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy for People With Persistent Pain Following Orthopedic Trauma

Who Can Participate

Age: 18Years +
All Genders

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible

You may qualify if you...

  • One or more acute orthopedic injuries
  • The patient sustained an orthopedic injury including pelvic or acetabulum fracture, open/displaced comminuted fracture of long bones, upper extremity injuries with major nerve involvement, injuries with significant injuries to major blood vessels, or traumatic amputation of big toe, thumb, or proximal to the wrist or ankle
  • Initial admission to the trauma or orthopedic center/service of the participating hospital or all necessary screening and patient characteristic data available in medical record
  • 18 years old or older
  • Received operative fixation for at least one acute orthopedic injury at a participating hospital
  • Average Brief Pain Inventory Score greater than 3 out of 10
  • Presence of pain most days (more than 3 days per week) for past three months
Not Eligible

You will not qualify if you...

  • Peri-prosthetic fractures of the femur regardless of cause
  • Non-ambulatory due to associated spinal cord injury
  • Non-ambulatory before injury
  • Currently pregnant
  • Moderate or severe traumatic brain injury as evidenced by intracranial hemorrhage on admission CT
  • Major amputations of upper or lower extremities
  • Non-English speaking
  • Likely to have severe problems maintaining follow-up due to severe psychiatric conditions, current alcohol or drug addiction, intellectual challenges without adequate family support, living outside hospital catchment area, follow-up planned at another medical center, prisoner status, homelessness, or other reasons

AI-Screening

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Your Study Journey

Screening

Duration - 2 to 4 weeks

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial.

1 visit (in-person)

Outpatient Treatment

Duration - 8 weeks

Participants attend Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy (EAET), an 8-week psychological intervention delivered through weekly psychotherapy sessions to help manage persistent pain and emotional distress following orthopedic trauma.

8 weekly psychotherapy visits (in-person, 60 minutes each)

Follow-up Assessments

Duration - Up to 12 months

Participants complete follow-up assessments including questionnaires about physical and emotional health and sensory testing to evaluate pain processing at multiple time points after treatment.

3 visits: baseline, post-treatment, and follow-up assessments

Trial Site Locations

Total: 1 location

1

Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21287

Actively Recruiting

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Research Team

R

Rachel Aaron, PhD

S

Stephen Wegener, PhD

How is the study designed?

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Masking

NONE

Allocation

NA

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Primary Purpose

TREATMENT

Number of Arms

1

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Published Research Related To This Trial

Emotional awareness and expression therapy (EAET) for chronic pain following traumatic orthopaedic injury and surgery: study protocol for a single-arm feasibility clinical trial.

Scott G Ravyts, Nicolette Carnahan, Claudia Campbell...

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40090682