| CTRI Number |
CTRI/2025/09/095481 [Registered on: 30/09/2025] Trial Registered Prospectively |
| Last Modified On: |
30/09/2025 |
| Post Graduate Thesis |
Yes |
| Type of Trial |
Interventional |
|
Type of Study
|
Drug |
| Study Design |
Randomized, Parallel Group, Placebo Controlled Trial |
|
Public Title of Study
|
Effect of Low-dose naltrexone in osteoarthritis pain |
|
Scientific Title of Study
|
EVALUATION OF EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF LOW-DOSE NALTREXONE IN PATIENT WITH OSTEOARTHRITIS: A RANDOMIZED, DOUBLE-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL |
| Trial Acronym |
NIL |
|
Secondary IDs if Any
|
| Secondary ID |
Identifier |
| NIL |
NIL |
|
|
Details of Principal Investigator or overall Trial Coordinator (multi-center study)
|
| Name |
Debasish Hota |
| Designation |
Professor |
| Affiliation |
AIIMS Bhubaneswar 751019 |
| Address |
Department of Pharmacology Academic Block
Room No 115
AIIMS Bhubaneswar Khordha ORISSA 751019 India |
| Phone |
9438884190 |
| Fax |
|
| Email |
pharm_debasish@aiimsbhubaneswar.edu.in |
|
Details of Contact Person Scientific Query
|
| Name |
Debasish Hota |
| Designation |
Professor |
| Affiliation |
AIIMS Bhubaneswar 751019 |
| Address |
Department of Pharmacology Academic Block
Room No 115
AIIMS Bhubaneswar Khordha ORISSA 751019 India |
| Phone |
9438884190 |
| Fax |
|
| Email |
pharm_debasish@aiimsbhubaneswar.edu.in |
|
Details of Contact Person Public Query
|
| Name |
DR RINI FASNI K |
| Designation |
Junior Resident |
| Affiliation |
AIIMS Bhubaneswar 751019 |
| Address |
Department of Pharmacology Academic Block Room No 115 AIIMS Bhubaneswar Khordha ORISSA 751019 India |
| Phone |
7092322399 |
| Fax |
|
| Email |
rinifasnik@gmail.com |
|
|
Source of Monetary or Material Support
|
| Drug sample be obtained form the Pharmaceutical industry as the conduct of investigator initiated trial |
|
|
Primary Sponsor
|
| Name |
AIIMS Bhubaneswar |
| Address |
Bhubaneswar 751019 Odisha |
| Type of Sponsor |
Government medical college |
|
|
Details of Secondary Sponsor
|
| Name |
Address |
| NIL |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Countries of Recruitment
|
India |
|
Sites of Study
|
| No of Sites = 2 |
| Name of Principal
Investigator |
Name of Site |
Site Address |
Phone/Fax/Email |
| Dr Sujit Kumar Tripathy |
All India Institute of Medical Sciences Bhubaneswar |
Room No.17, OPD Block
Department of Orthopedics
AIIMS Bhubaneswar-751019
Bhubaneswar-751019 Khordha ORISSA |
9438884155
ortho_sujit@aiimsbhubaneswar.edu.in |
| Debasish Hota |
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar |
Room No. 115, Academic Block
Department of Pharmacology
AIIMS Bhubaneswar-751019 Khordha ORISSA |
9438884190
pharm_debasish@aiimsbhubaneswar.edu.in |
|
|
Details of Ethics Committee
|
| No of Ethics Committees= 1 |
| Name of Committee |
Approval Status |
| Institutional Ethics Committee |
Approved |
|
|
Regulatory Clearance Status from DCGI
|
|
|
Health Condition / Problems Studied
|
| Health Type |
Condition |
| Patients |
(1) ICD-10 Condition: M170||Bilateral primary osteoarthritis of knee, |
|
|
Intervention / Comparator Agent
|
| Type |
Name |
Details |
| Comparator Agent |
Mached placebo |
To be administered once daily for 8 weeks |
| Intervention |
Tablet naltrexone 5 mg |
To be administered once daily for 8 weeks |
|
|
Inclusion Criteria
|
| Age From |
45.00 Year(s) |
| Age To |
75.00 Year(s) |
| Gender |
Both |
| Details |
- Patients of either sex having age between 45 75 years with clinical diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis grade 1 or 2 according to Kellgren and Lawrence system for classification of osteoarthritis
- Patient with VAS score more than 2 out of 10
- Patients who are willing to give informed written consent
|
|
| ExclusionCriteria |
| Details |
- Patient with history of hypersensitivity to naltrexone
- Patient on treatment with any type of prior opioid medication
- Patient with history of opioid or alcohol abuse
- Patient on treatment with systemic corticosteroid within the last 4 weeks
- Patient with diagnosis other than osteoarthritis
- Patient on treatment with intra-articular injection such as corticosteroids or hyaluronic acid
- Patient with abnormal liver functions with total bilirubin more than 2.5 mg per deciliter
- Patient with severe acute infection, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus congenital or acquired immunodeficiency liver cirrhosis severe cardiac disease or myocardial infarction in last 1 month
- Patients with blood hemoglobin levels less than 9 grams per dL, absolute lymphocyte count less than 500 cells and or absolute neutrophil count less than 1000 cells per cubic mm of blood
- Patient with abnormal renal or liver functions with creatinine more than 2 mg per deciliter or serum total cholesterol more than 200mg per dl).
- Patient with severe active infection like active tuberculosis hepatitis B or C or positive HIV serology at screening
- Patient with known or suspected history of immunosuppression or history of opportunistic infections like tuberculosis histoplasmosis listeriosis coccidioidomycosis or aspergillosis
- Pregnant or lactating woman or woman of childbearing age without effective contraception
|
|
|
Method of Generating Random Sequence
|
Computer generated randomization |
|
Method of Concealment
|
Pre-numbered or coded identical Containers |
|
Blinding/Masking
|
Participant and Investigator Blinded |
|
Primary Outcome
|
| Outcome |
TimePoints |
| • To evaluate the efficacy of add on low dose naltrexone against add on placebo in patients with knee osteoarthritis using reduction in the VAS score for 8 weeks. |
At baseline 4 and 8 weeks |
|
|
Secondary Outcome
|
| Outcome |
TimePoints |
• To compare the proportion of patients achieving WOMAC score 0 or a reduction of 10 grade from baseline
• To compare the percentage of patients with Oxford Knee Score (OKS) pain subscale of 28 or a 3-point reduction from baseline
• To evaluate and compare the EQ-5D score from base line
• To evaluate and compare changes in serum TNF alpha level from baseline
• To assess change in complete blood count, ESR, liver function test, renal function test, and serum lipid profile from baseline to 4 and 8 weeks after therapy.
• To evaluate the number and frequency of rescue medications needed in LDN group compared to placebo group.
• To evaluate the safety and tolerability of Low Dose Naltrexone compared to placebo in patients with knee osteoarthritis, as measured by the incidence and severity of adverse events.
|
At baseline 4 and 8 weeks |
|
|
Target Sample Size
|
Total Sample Size="130" Sample Size from India="130"
Final Enrollment numbers achieved (Total)= "Applicable only for Completed/Terminated trials"
Final Enrollment numbers achieved (India)="Applicable only for Completed/Terminated trials" |
|
Phase of Trial
|
Phase 3 |
|
Date of First Enrollment (India)
|
16/10/2025 |
| Date of Study Completion (India) |
Applicable only for Completed/Terminated trials |
| Date of First Enrollment (Global) |
Date Missing |
| Date of Study Completion (Global) |
Applicable only for Completed/Terminated trials |
|
Estimated Duration of Trial
|
Years="1" Months="6" Days="0" |
|
Recruitment Status of Trial (Global)
|
Not Applicable |
| Recruitment Status of Trial (India) |
Not Yet Recruiting |
|
Publication Details
|
N/A |
|
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement
|
Will individual participant data (IPD) be shared publicly (including data dictionaries)?
Response - NO
|
|
Brief Summary
|
Despite considerable progress in the field, the primary treatments for Osteoarthritis remain traditional. Existing medical treatments such as NSAIDs corticosteroids, and opioids mainly offer symptom relief without targeting the underlying causes of the condition. Although these drugs can provide temporary benefit, they are often associated with adverse effects like gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and kidney complications, and opioids carry a risk of addiction. Moreover these treatments fall short in addressing the neuroinflammation and central pain sensitization that play a crucial role in the persistence and intensity of OA pain leaving many patients inadequately treated. In recent it has shown that in osteoarthritis there is activation of toll like receptor 4 or TLR4 in innate immune cells and further activation of NFkB pathway in leading to cytokine release and further damage. Low dose naltrexone or LDN represents a novel treatment strategy that targets both immune and nervous system pathways involved in chronic pain. In low doses, it briefly blocks opioid receptors, leading to a compensatory increase in the body’s natural opioid. Also dampen inflammation by inhibiting TLR4 and thereby suppressing microglial cell activity. This action decreases the production of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF alpha IL1beta and IL6 which are known to contribute to the development of osteoarthritis. LDN has demonstrated potential in managing various chronic pain and inflammatory conditions, with a favourable safety profile, low addiction risk and low cost. Its dual action on inflammation and nerve sensitization makes it a promising option for knee OA treatment. We hypothesise that LDN may act on TLR4 on peripheral innate immune cells and modulate the activity and decrease the pro inflammatory cytokines release in OA there for we propose this study. |