SCIMITAR Trial Telehealth Music and Imagery Therapy for Veterans with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating a stepped-care music therapy intervention delivered via telehealth to help Veterans with chronic musculoskeletal MSK pain. This trial builds on prior research that showed music listening and imagery interventions are feasible and acceptable for pain relief. The study aims to offer non-drug treatment options to improve pain and related psychological symptoms in Veterans, who often experience significant pain and mental health challenges together. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two groups. The intervention group first receives music listening guided by a music therapist to create a personalized playlist for daily use over 4 weeks. Those who continue move to music imagery therapy with eight weekly sessions focusing on self-regulation and inner resource development. The comparison group is a waitlist control who receive no treatment during the study but are offered abbreviated music therapy sessions afterward. Both groups may continue other standard pain treatments. During the study, participants complete assessments at baseline, 1, 3, and 6 months to measure pain interference, pain severity, mood, sleep, anxiety, depression, PTSD symptoms, stress, and mood regulation. The primary outcome is pain interference measured by the Brief Pain Inventory. Researchers monitor participant adherence with music therapy and collect data on psychological and functional outcomes. The total participation includes a 6-month follow-up period to evaluate lasting effects and safety.

Stepped-Care Intervention of Music and Imagery to Assess Relief (SCIMITAR) Trial