Whole-person approach to chronic low back pain with advanced phenotyping
Official title: Whole person experience of pain: Novel integration with low back pain phenotypes
Funded at University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh · NIH-11419847 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A large NIH project from the University of Pittsburgh aims to map and understand chronic low back pain through deep, real-world data on biology, behavior, and function to help tailor future treatments.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project start | September 19, 2025 |
| Project end | July 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $4,445,948 |
| NIH project number | 5UC2AR086243-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11419847 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with chronic low back pain and comparison groups without low back pain who can participate in long-term follow-up.
✕Less likely to help
Patients not experiencing chronic low back pain or those unable to commit to long-term follow-up may receive little direct benefit.
What this research studies
This project uses data from people with chronic low back pain and people without pain to build a comprehensive picture of how pain develops and persists over time. It combines clinical assessments, biological markers, biomechanics, and behavioral information to identify patient subtypes. By integrating these findings into a precision medicine model, the team hopes to improve how treatments are chosen and how responses are predicted. The work builds on existing BACPAC foundations and will track changes in phenotypes over several years to inform better care.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients could receive more personalized and effective treatments for chronic low back pain.
How similar studies have gone: Prior BACPAC work has produced large datasets and promising phenotypes that inform precision approaches; this project extends that framework.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sowa, Gwendolyn a — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Sowa, Gwendolyn a
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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.