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RecruitingNCT06246669Updated Dec 9, 2024

The Influence of Prescribed Exercise on Pain Related Fear Following Concussion in Collegiate Athletes

An interventional study of Treadmill Walking in Concussion, Brain, sponsored by University of Virginia. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 25 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-12-09.

Sponsored by University of Virginia · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was expected by Mar 2025, 1 year 7 months ago, but the record still lists the study as recruiting.
  • Started Feb 2024; still recruiting 2 years 7 months later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
46
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 25 Years
Sex
All
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Study summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare the effects of acute aerobic exercise at two different intensities on psychological measures, symptomology, and time to symptom free in collegiate student athletes with concussion. The main questions it aims to answer are:

  • Does prescribed, acute aerobic exercise influence measures of pain related fear, anxiety, depression, symptoms, and recovery time?
  • Does the intensity of the exercise prescription also influence the aforementioned outcomes?

Participants will be randomly assigned into either a light intensity or moderate intensity aerobic exercise (treadmill walking) group. They will initiate the exercise protocol 48 hours following their concussion diagnosis, and complete exercise sessions 5 times per week until they report symptom-free. Researchers will compare the light intensity group to the moderate intensity group to see if intensity of exercise influences psychological measures of pain related fear, anxiety, depression, symptomology, and time to symptom-free.

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Conditions studied

  • Concussion, Brain

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Keywords

  • kinesiophobia
  • exercise
  • anxiety
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In context

Brain Concussion

530 studies on the registry are indexed under Brain Concussion; 151 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 46 is below the median of 64 across 364 interventional studies indexed under Brain Concussion.

Browse Brain Concussion studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Virginia is the lead sponsor of 653 studies on the registry; 134 are open to participants now.

Of its 60 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 41 (68%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 25 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Collegiate athlete (varsity)
  • Symptomatic at time of exercise prescription

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • If advanced neuroimaging was performed, any subject with a structural abnormality will be excluded
  • History of traumatic brain injury requiring hospitalization
  • Not cleared to play their sport by a physician due to some other injury such as an ankle sprain or muscle strain
  • If individual is diagnosed with any condition that is a contraindication to aerobic exercise. Please note that all participants will have already been cleared to participate in their respective collegiate sport after extensive pre-participation physical examinations upon entering the university.
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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Care provider)
Enrollment
46 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Moderate Intensity

    Treadmill walking at a rating of perceived exertion (RPE) of 13.

    Behavioral: Treadmill Walking

  • Experimental
    Light Intensity

    Treadmill walking at a rating of perceived exertion (RPE) of 9.

    Behavioral: Treadmill Walking

Interventions

  • BehavioralTreadmill Walking

    A treadmill will be used for participant to walk on. The frequency of exercise will be 5 times per week until they report symptom-free. The intensity will be determined via random group allocation (RPE of 13 or 9). The type of exercise is treadmill walking. The time of the intervention will depend on the the time it takes an individual to reach a specific caloric expenditure as a function of their weight and treadmill incline. This is based on the most recent American Congress of Sports Medicine's guidelines for estimating gross energy expenditure during common physical activities.

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. The Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia-17 (TSK-17)

    A measure of fear beliefs associated with exercise, movement, and re-injury. Minimum score of 17, Maximum 68. Higher scores indicate worse kinesiophobia.

    Time frame: 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every other day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

  2. Athlete Fear Avoidance Questionnaire (AFAQ)

    A measure of fear avoidance specifically designed for injured athletes. Minimum score of 10, Maximum score of 50. Higher scores indicate higher levels of fear-avoidance.

    Time frame: 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every other day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

  3. Revised Head Injury Scale (HIS-r)

    A measure of 22 concussion related symptoms and their associated duration and severity over the previous 24 hours. Minimum duration of 1 and a maximum duration of 132. Minimum severity of 0 and maximum severity of 132. Higher levels of symptom count, duration, and severity indicate worse symptomology.

    Time frame: 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every single day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

  4. Days until symptom-free

    The time it takes, in days, for a participant to report symptom free.

    Time frame: Depends on individual injury characteristics but has a median of 6 days, range of 0-203 days at the research site.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Generalized Anxiety Index-7 (GAD-7)

    Measure of anxiety levels over previous two weeks. Minimum score of 0 and maximum score of 21. Higher scores indicating higher levels of anxiety.

    Time frame: 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every other day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

  2. Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)

    Measure of depression levels over previous two weeks. Minimum score of 0 and maximum score of 27. Higher scores indicate higher levels of depression.

    Time frame: 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every other day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

  3. Days until return to sport

    The time it takes, in days, for a participant to make a full return to their sport.

    Time frame: Depends on individual injury characteristics but will be, on median, 5 days after reporting symptom free which takes 6 days on median at the research site.

  4. Step count

    Number of steps taken during daily life outside of intervention.

    Time frame: Step count recording will begin 48 hours after concussion diagnosis and then every single day until participant reports symptom free which takes, on median, 6 days with a range of 0-203 days at the research site.

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Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • University of Virginia Department of Kinesiology
    Charlottesville, Virginia 22903, United States
    Recruiting
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Leddy JJ, Burma JS, Toomey CM, Hayden A, Davis GA, Babl FE, Gagnon I, Giza CC, Kurowski BG, Silverberg ND, Willer B, Ronksley PE, Schneider KJ. Rest and exercise early after sport-related concussion: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2023 Jun;57(12):762-770. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2022-106676. PubMed 37316185 ↗
  • Lal A, Kolakowsky-Hayner SA, Ghajar J, Balamane M. The Effect of Physical Exercise After a Concussion: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Am J Sports Med. 2018 Mar;46(3):743-752. doi: 10.1177/0363546517706137. Epub 2017 Jun 1. PubMed 28570092 ↗
  • Lawrence DW, Richards D, Comper P, Hutchison MG. Earlier time to aerobic exercise is associated with faster recovery following acute sport concussion. PLoS One. 2018 Apr 18;13(4):e0196062. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0196062. eCollection 2018. PubMed 29668716 ↗
  • Thompson XD, Newman TM, Donahue CC, Erdman NK, Statuta SM, Resch JE. Kinesiophobia Is Related to Acute Musculoskeletal Injury Incidence Following Concussion. J Sport Rehabil. 2022 Sep 1;32(2):145-150. doi: 10.1123/jsr.2022-0134. Print 2023 Feb 1. PubMed 36049743 ↗
  • Reinking S, Seehusen CN, Walker GA, Wilson JC, Howell DR. Transitory kinesiophobia after sport-related concussion and its correlation with reaction time. J Sci Med Sport. 2022 Jan;25(1):20-24. doi: 10.1016/j.jsams.2021.07.010. Epub 2021 Jul 29. PubMed 34404602 ↗
  • Jadhakhan F, Sobeih R, Falla D. Effects of exercise/physical activity on fear of movement in people with spine-related pain: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open. 2022 May 19;12(5):e060264. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-060264. PubMed 35589367 ↗
  • Patricios JS, Schneider KJ, Dvorak J, Ahmed OH, Blauwet C, Cantu RC, Davis GA, Echemendia RJ, Makdissi M, McNamee M, Broglio S, Emery CA, Feddermann-Demont N, Fuller GW, Giza CC, Guskiewicz KM, Hainline B, Iverson GL, Kutcher JS, Leddy JJ, Maddocks D, Manley G, McCrea M, Purcell LK, Putukian M, Sato H, Tuominen MP, Turner M, Yeates KO, Herring SA, Meeuwisse W. Consensus statement on concussion in sport: the 6th International Conference on Concussion in Sport-Amsterdam, October 2022. Br J Sports Med. 2023 Jun;57(11):695-711. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2023-106898. PubMed 37316210 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: Yes — De-identified data may be available upon reasonable request from qualified individuals.

Supporting information: Study protocol

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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Dec 9, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06246669
Lead sponsor
University of Virginia
Responsible party
Jacob Resch (Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology, University of Virginia) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 7, 2024
Start date
Feb 27, 2024
Primary completion
Mar 2025 (estimated)
Completion
Mar 2025 (estimated)
Last update
Dec 9, 2024

Study contacts

Jake Resch, PhD
Contact
jer6x@virginia.edu
434-243-6535
Daniel Rosenblum, M.Ed.
Contact
dr6gz@virginia.edu
203-253-4887

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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