Pain-related stigma and health in teens with gut-brain disorders
Official title: Pain-related Stigma in Adolescents with Disorders of the Gut-Brain Interaction: Longitudinal Effects on Health Outcomes
Funded at Connecticut Children's Medical Center · NIH-11340963 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Teens aged 12–17 with gut-brain disorders experience painful symptoms and stigma, and this study follows them over time to see how stigma relates to health outcomes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Connecticut Children's Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Hartford, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2026 |
| Project end | March 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $782,101 |
| NIH project number | 1R01DK147191-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11340963 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adolescents aged 12–17 with disorders of gut-brain interaction and chronic abdominal pain who experience stigma.
✕Less likely to help
Teens without chronic abdominal pain or those not experiencing stigma-related challenges may be less directly affected by the findings.
What this research studies
This project tracks adolescents with DGBI-P across multiple centers to see how stigma from parents, friends, and clinicians affects their pain, disability, mood, and social functioning. Researchers will collect reports at several time points (0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months) and also measure stress markers in the body to understand biological links. The study will help families and clinicians understand how social experiences influence long-term recovery and daily life for teens with chronic abdominal pain. If stigma worsens outcomes, the findings could inform interventions to support coping, communication, and access to care. The research is designed to be relevant to patients by focusing on real-world experiences and health trajectories during adolescence.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Better understanding of how stigma affects teen health could lead to targeted support and interventions to improve pain, functioning, and well-being.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work suggests stigma affects health outcomes in chronic pain, but this study will provide longitudinal data specific to DGBI-P in adolescence.
Where this research is happening
-
Connecticut Children's Medical Center
Hartford, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wakefield, Emily O — Connecticut Children's Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Wakefield, Emily O
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.