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New Study Includes Pain Management Device for Chronic Symptoms of NFL Players
The long-lasting effects of trauma endured over the course of athletes’ careers is a growing concern in many sports. American Football is one such sport where this concern is particularly in the public eye, with concussive head trauma being a frequent occurrence among National Football League (NFL) and college players.
The NFL and NFLPA (National Football League Players Association) are funding research into novel pain management systems for people who suffer from post traumatic headache (PTH), one of the most common aftereffects of head trauma. PTH leaves sufferers with debilitating headaches after a concussion or brain injury and is considered a substantial impairment to day-to-day life.
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PTH is hard to treat, with very few effective care options, the hope is that the NFL-NFLPA funded study could provide new treatment options for NFL players living with the condition. The study will be conducted by American Society of Pain and Neuroscience (ASPN) and Emory University in Georgia.
They will focus on the use of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS) and cannabidiol (CBD) in comparison with the standard treatment methods. The research focusing on nVNS is named “A Pilot Study Assessing Non-Invasive Treatment of Refractory Post-Concussion Headache Pain," and is led by ASPN researcher Erika Petersen.
A device developed by commercial biotech electroCore will be used to study the efficacy of nVNS, a treatment that involves electronically stimulating a long nerve that runs from the brain to other essential organs in the body. The handheld device is the first and only of its kind to be FDA-approved.
“We are thrilled to have been selected to be part of a study that focuses on alternative care options for pain management and performance,” said Peter Staats, Chief Medical Officer at electroCore
The data collected from this study will guide future research into the management of post-traumatic headache pain. The NFL-NFLPA Joint Pain Management Committee (PMC) selected this funding, with the goal of facilitating research to better understand and develop viable alternative pain management therapies for NFL players.
Staats added: “Post-Traumatic Headache as an area of focus for electroCore is a natural progression from our cleared indications in primary headache. We are hopeful that nVNS will prove to be a pain management option for athletes, military personnel, or anyone suffering from pain associated with PTH.”
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