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Exercise, Motor Imagery, and Pain Neuroscience Education for Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Randomized Trial

NCT07196150 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 51

Last updated 2025-09-29

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to find out whether exercise, motor imagery training, and pain neuroscience education can help reduce menstrual pain and improve well-being in young women with primary dysmenorrhea. The study will also look at how these approaches affect menstrual symptoms, movement control, and cognitive flexibility.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

* Does adding motor imagery or pain neuroscience education to an exercise program reduce pain and menstrual symptoms more than exercise alone?
* Do these approaches improve movement control, thinking flexibility, and knowledge about pain?

Researchers will compare three groups:

* Exercise only
* Exercise plus motor imagery training
* Exercise plus pain neuroscience education

Participants will:

* Attend supervised exercise sessions twice a week for 8 weeks
* Practice either motor imagery or receive short pain neuroscience education, depending on their group
* Complete questionnaires and tests before and after the program, during the first three days of menstruation

Conditions

  • Primary Dysmenorrhea

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Exercise Program

Participants will complete an 8-week supervised exercise program, delivered twice per week. The program includes lumbopelvic stabilization, stretching, and endurance training exercises designed to reduce menstrual pain and improve physical function.

BEHAVIORAL

Exercise plus Motor Imagery Training

Participants will complete the same 8-week supervised exercise program as the Exercise Only group. In addition, they will practice kinesthetic motor imagery of the prescribed movements prior to performing them, aiming to enhance motor control and pain modulation.

BEHAVIORAL

Exercise plus Pain Neuroscience Education

Participants will complete the same 8-week supervised exercise program as the Exercise Only group. In addition, they will receive weekly face-to-face pain neuroscience education sessions focused on pain neurophysiology, supported with home assignments to reinforce learning.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Muge Dereli

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
25 Years
Sex
FEMALE
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-02-25
Primary Completion
2026-06-30
Completion
2026-09-30

Countries

  • Turkey (Türkiye)

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07196150 on ClinicalTrials.gov