An interventional study of In-person physical therapy (PT) and Telehealth physical therapy (TH-PT) in Musculoskeletal Pain, sponsored by Brooke Army Medical Center. Not yet recruiting at 4 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 64 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-07-15.
Sponsored by Brooke Army Medical Center · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The purpose of this study is to explore and compare the effectiveness of in-person versus remote physical therapy (PT) for the treatment of musculoskeletal (MSK) pain within the Military Health System (MHS).
This study will explore the effect of remote two-way video conference telehealth physical therapy sessions compared to standard of care in-person physical therapy. Eligible participants will be randomized into one of the 2 treatment arms. Specific aims will compare the effectiveness of physical therapy delivery strategies on the primary outcome of Pain, Enjoyment, and General Activity (PEG-3) Scale, which measures pain interference, and secondary outcomes of PROMIS short forms (mood, physical function, fatigue, sleep disturbance, and prescription medication misuse), patient global impression of change, and pain self-efficacy.
515 studies on the registry are indexed under Musculoskeletal Pain; 127 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 210 is above the median of 70 across 370 interventional studies indexed under Musculoskeletal Pain.
Browse Musculoskeletal Pain studies →Brooke Army Medical Center is the lead sponsor of 94 studies on the registry; 11 are open to participants now.
Of its 8 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 2 (25%) have results posted.
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Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Contraindication
A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants will receive individual treatment sessions provided in-person based on the preference and clinical expertise of the clinician. All sessions will be supervised in a clinic. A digital exercise prescription and patient education platform will be available for their use.
Other: In-person physical therapy (PT)
Participants will receive individual treatment sessions provided remotely via a 2-way video conferencing platform. The core components of the treatment sessions include: 1) education, particularly on the biopsychosocial aspects of pain, 2) individualized exercise instruction, and 3) pain coping strategies for self-management. A digital exercise prescription and patient education platform will be available for their use.
Other: Telehealth physical therapy (TH-PT)
Participants assigned to in-person PT will receive individual treatment sessions provided by a licensed, on-site PT. Participants will receive 1-on-1 sessions based on the preference and clinical expertise of the clinician. Participants assigned to in-person physical therapy will receive individual treatment sessions provided by a licensed, on-site physical therapist at the participating military treatment facility. Physical therapists delivering in-person physical therapy will have the option to provide participants a digital home exercise program, however this will not be required. If you choose to download and use either app, you will have to accept the app's terms of service.
Participants assigned to telehealth physical therapy will use two-way video conferencing with a licensed physical therapist via a secure platform approved for patient care. Video conferencing will be accessible via a mobile app or web browser on your home computer. Participants assigned to telehealth physical therapy will be provided a digital home exercise program. The home exercise program is accessible via a mobile app or web browser on your home computer. This is an app that some military clinics already use as standard of care for providing home exercise programs to their patients, so there is a chance you would be receiving your exercises by this method even if you didn't participate in this study.
Pain, Enjoyment, and General Activity Scale (PEG-3)
The PEG-3 measure includes 3 items evaluating 1) pain severity; and interference of pain with 2) enjoyment and 3) general activity. Item response options range from 0-10. The PEG-3 score is expressed as the mean of all item scores ranging from 0-10.
Time frame: 12 Weeks
PROMIS-29
The PROMIS-29 assesses additional domains relevant to patients with MSK pain including physical function, fatigue, depression, anxiety, pain intensity, ability to participate in social roles, and sleep disturbance. The PROMIS-29 can also be used to calculate a physical and mental health summary score and can be used in cost-effectiveness analyses.
Time frame: 12 Weeks
Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ)
Because of its role in patients' capacity of selfmanagement, we will use the 10 item Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ) to quantify an individual's confidence in performing activities despite pain.
Time frame: 12 Weeks
Patient Global Assessment of Change (PGIC)
Participants' satisfaction with their intervention will be based on the single-item Patient Global Assessment of Change (PGIC).
Time frame: 12 Weeks
PROMIS Short Form Prescription Pain Medication Misuse
The PROMIS short form 7a assesses the abuse of prescription pain medication. The short form uses fixed items from the PROMIS item bank to provide a T-score with population mean = 50 (sd=10).
Time frame: 26 Weeks
EuroQoL (EQ-5D)
The EQ-5D is a generic quality of life questionnaire that will assess quality of life on a scale that can be referenced to other disease conditions. The EQ-5D covers 5 domains: mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression. Each domain has 3 response categories: level 1, "no problems"; level 2, "some problems"; and level 3, "inability or extreme problems." Responses are combined to give a 5-digit descriptive health state classification (e.g., 11222). The EQ-5D yields a total of 243 possible health states. Valuations for each health state are available. The EQ-5D is commonly used in economic evaluation of interventions and cost-effectiveness analysis.
Time frame: 12 Weeks
Plan to share: Yes — Study data will be made available upon reasonable request, and pursuant to any Data Sharing Agreement requirements from the US Defense Health Agency. DSA applications and information can be found at health.mil
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Informed consent form, Analytic code
Time frame: Within one year
Data sharing details ↗ · www.health.mil
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Jul 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Brooke Army Medical Center