Identifying Markers of Trajectory in Pediatric Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

What this Trial Is About

This research aims to identify psychosocial factors and brain changes that predict recovery patterns in children aged 10 to 17 years with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), a severe chronic pain condition. The study focuses on how these factors interact and influence short-term and long-term recovery, comparing children undergoing inpatient and outpatient treatment to healthy controls. The goal is to better understand the mechanisms behind CRPS recovery in pediatric patients. Children with CRPS receiving regular inpatient treatment at the FIRST clinic or outpatient treatment at the Pain Management Center will be observed alongside healthy children for comparison. Treatments include physical, occupational, recreational therapy, psychotherapy, and usual pharmacological care. Participants will undergo three sessions: at treatment start, treatment end (about 4 weeks for inpatients and 3 months for outpatients), and six months post-treatment. Healthy controls follow a similar schedule without treatment. During each approximately three-hour session, child participants complete psychosocial questionnaires, psychophysical tests, and brain imaging scans, while parents provide psychosocial data. Researchers will measure changes in pain perception, functional disability, and brain function using advanced imaging techniques at all timepoints. This thorough monitoring helps track recovery trajectories and the impact of various markers over time, with study participation spanning from treatment start to six months after treatment ends.

Markers of Trajectory in Pediatric CRPS