Conditions: Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: CROSSOVER
Enrollment: 24
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
The primary objective of the proposed pilot study is to determine the efficacy of oxymorphone hydrochloride and propoxyphene/acetaminophen combination in prolonging the time to onset of pain and reducing the severity of pain associated with walking in patients lumbar spinal stenosis that have clinical symptoms of neurogenic claudication. Neurogenic claudication is defined as movement induced leg pain, numbness, heaviness, or vague discomfort in part or all of one or both legs provoked with walking and standing and relieved by sitting, squatting, or forward flexion posturing. The secondary objective is to examine the functional benefit of oxymorphone hydrochloride and propoxyphene/acetaminophen combination with respect to improvement in duration and distance of walking.

Detailed description:
A computer-generated randomization plan was used for assignment of subjects to one of six treatment sequences (4 subjects per sequence): oxymorphone/propoxyphene/placebo, oxymorphone/placebo/propoxyphene, placebo/oxymorphone/propoxyphene, placebo/propoxyphene/oxymorphone, propoxyphene/oxymorphone/placebo, or propoxyphene/placebo/oxymorphone. One dose of blinded study drug (opana, propoxypehen, or placebo) was given at study days 1, 5, and 9. The primary endpoint was time to first symptoms of moderate intensity (NRS ≥ 4/10) during treadmill ambulation. Ambulation assessment was performed during the screening visit. Ambulation assessment was also performed 90 minutes after administration of study drug on days 1, 5 and 9, to evaluate pain intensity associated with walking as well as distance covered by the patients. Quantitative assessment of ambulation was conducted on a treadmill at 0° ramp incline at 1.2 miles per hour (mph). Measurement of self-reported symptom severity using the NRS at baseline, and every 30 seconds for a maximum of 15 minutes was recorded. The following information was also recorded: time to first symptoms, total ambulation time. The examination was stopped after 15 minutes or at the onset of severe symptoms. Severe symptoms were defined as the level of discomfort that would make patients stop walking in usual life situations. No one was encouraged or prompted to continue walking beyond this point. Patients were instructed to walk with an upright posture. They were not permitted to lean forward or hold onto the handrails during the examination. Secondary outcome measures included area under the curve of present pain intensity with ambulation at each specified time point, final pain intensity with walking, walking tolerance, time to return to baseline pain level after ambulation, as well as the results of a series of pain related questionnaires including: Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Patient Global Assessment (PGA), NRS, Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), modified Brief Pain Inventory short form (mBPI-sf), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and Swiss Spinal Stenosis (SSS).

Arms:
arm 1: Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. arm 2: Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. arm 3: Placebo tablet tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) was given one time at the third study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. arm 4: Placebo tablet tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. arm 5: Darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. arm 6: Darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit.

Interventions: intervention 1: opana then darvocet then placebo intervention 2: opana then placebo then darvocet intervention 3: placebo then opana then darvocet intervention 4: Placebo then darvocet then opana intervention 5: Darvocet then opana then placebo intervention 6: Darvocet then placebo then opana
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. intervention 2: Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. intervention 3: Placebo tablet tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) was given one time at the third study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. intervention 4: Placebo tablet tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. intervention 5: Darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit. intervention 6: Darvocet (100mg Propoxyphene/650mg Acetaminophen) tablet was given one time at the second study visit, four days later placebo tablet was given one time at the third study visit, four days later Opana IR, 5mg (oxymorphone hydrochloride) tablet was given one time at the fourth study visit.

Protocol document: