Vascular Diseases, PeripheralNCT07683871
Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related Factors
An observational study of Vascular Diseases, Peripheral and Venous Insufficiency of Leg, run by Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine at 1 site in China.
Trial summary
Objective: This study is a single-center prospective observational study, which recorded the pain scores of patients at four time nodes during surgery (puncture and catheterization, injection of swelling fluid, radiofrequency generator work, and end of surgery), and analyzed the correlation between intraoperative pain… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 90 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Vascular Diseases, Peripheral, Venous Insufficiency of Leg, Varicose Veins of Lower Limb
- What is being tested?
- VAS scores of the puncture
- Type of treatment
- Injection or infusion, Surgery or procedure
- How many people
- 155 participants
- Where
- 1 siteChina
- Study dates
- 1 Jul 2024to 1 Sep 2024
- How long will I take part?
- 1 Day
- Phase
- Observational
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 90 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Study population: Patients diagnosed with primary VVs from April 2023 to September 2023 who were admitted to the hospital and underwent RFA treatment for the main trunk of the saphenous vein
Who may be able to join
- Age≥ 18 years old, ≤ 90 years old;
- the patient's life expectancy is greater than 12 months;
- The clinical diagnosis is primary VVs, CEAP classification C2-C6, and the GSV segment needs to be treated, including pain, burning sensation, heaviness, fatigue, itchy skin, night cramps and other clinical symptoms;
- Doppler ultrasound confirmed that the diameter of GSV was greater than 3mm and less than 12mm when standing;
- Doppler ultrasound confirms that GSV is located in the saphenofascia or the distance between GSV and the skin surface is >1cm;
- radiofrequency ablation treatment only for unilateral GSV walking area;
- The patient is willing to cooperate with the completion of the examination specified in the protocol.
Who cannot join
- GSV thrombosis, or combined with deep vein thrombosis, or previous history of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism;
- patients with recurrence after prior VVs-related surgery (C2r);
- the GSV trunk is severely distorted, and it is expected that the catheter will not be able to pass;
- Severe ischemia of the lower limbs, Ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI) < 0.8;
- Known allergy to the drugs and device materials involved in the study;
- Previously implanted with a pacemaker or defibrillator, and currently receiving regular anticoagulation therapy (such as warfarin, heparin);
Show all 12Show fewer
- Pregnant or lactating females;
- Patients who are unable or unwilling to participate in the study;
- Participating in the research of other drugs or devices;
- Skin malignancies other than non-melanoma that are being treated;
- daily use of narcotic drugs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to control pain caused by venous disease;
- The investigator judged that endovenous treatment was not suitable;
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
China1 site
Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Chengdu, Sichuan, 610000
About this study
Objective: This study is a single-center prospective observational study, which recorded the pain scores of patients at four time nodes during surgery (puncture and catheterization, injection of swelling fluid, radiofrequency generator work, and end of surgery), and analyzed the correlation between intraoperative pain and age, gender, BMI and other factors, so as to summarize and improve the details of surgery and reduce patients' intraoperative pain.
Read the detailed description
Although the global vascular surgeons have made significant progress in the study of RFA in the treatment of VVs, there are still many unknown areas to be explored, and the current research mainly focuses on the surgical effect of RFA and related complications, while the research on intraoperative pain is relatively scarce. First of all, RFA does not have a clear definition of intraoperative pain in the treatment of varicose veins of the lower extremities, so it has not received enough attention in clinical practice, and many doctors regard the success of surgery as the end point of treatment, but ignore the impact of intraoperative pain on the patient's surgical experience. In addition, with the continuous progress of varicose vein surgery of the lower extremities, the anesthesia method has also changed from general anesthesia to combined spinal-epidural block to today's local anesthesia, the swollen anesthetic solution is the main anesthetic drug used in RFA surgery, and the infiltration of the swollen anesthetic fluid around the saphenous vein is the key to the success of RFA, but paradoxically, this is also the most intense part of the patient's pain, the swollen fluid is usually a crystalloid solution containing local anesthetic and epinephrine, which is acidic in nature, which is also the main reason for the "tingling" during skin infiltration , A Cochrane review noted that adjusting the pH of lidocaine solution by adding sodium bicarbonate significantly reduced the pain reported on a 10 cm visual analogue scale (VAS) during skin infiltration, and that the temperature of the swollen anesthetic solution also had an effect on pain during skin infiltration, Bell et al. and Alonso et al. In a prospective randomized controlled trial, it was found that heating the local anesthetic solution to 37°C and 42°C reduced pain sensation, and heating the local anesthetic solution containing epinephrine to near body temperature was effective in reducing the pain of local anesthetic infiltration in patients, however, in a randomized clinical trial in 2018, patients were divided into cold swollen fluid group (4 °C) and room temperature swollen fluid group (24 °C), and the authors found that patients in the cold swollen fluid group had less pain during and after RFA, The amount of postoperative analgesics was significantly reduced. Therefore, the patient's pain during RFA has become a problem that we must pay attention to, and the operator should pay attention to the details and pay attention to the patient's intraoperative condition during RFA, so as to reduce the patient's intraoperative pain and give the patient a better surgical experience.
- Being tested
- VAS scores of the puncture
- Keywords
- Varicose veins of the lower extremities, Radiofrequency Ablation, intraoperative pain, visual analogue scale
- Medical subject headings
- Peripheral Vascular Diseases
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
VAS scores of the punctureProcedure or surgery
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related Factors | Among the 155 patients were evaluated by our team with CEAP grading and ultrasound measurements to record the diameter of the saphenous vein before surgery, and the procedure of radiofrequency ablation of the saphenous vein trunk supplemented with sclerotherapy was applied to record the data of the operating room temperature, puncture site, and the VAS scores of the puncture and tube placement, injection of the swelling fluid, radiofrequency generator, and the end of the procedure. The patients' intraoperative pain scores were descriptively analyzed to assess the degree of intraoperative pain, and non，parametric tests were applied to analyze the correlation between preoperative and intraoperative factors and intraoperative pain. Receives: Procedure: VAS scores of the puncture |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Puncture catheterization
The pain during puncture and catheterization mainly comes from needle breakage, local anesthetic infiltration and vascular sheath insertion, the 7F vascular puncture sheath group was used in this study, the diameter of the puncture needle is 1.27mm, the pain during skin puncture is stronger than that of the syringe needle used for intravenous or intramuscular injection, there is a well-designed randomized controlled use of an automatic injection device to standardize the injection parameters, and the use of smaller needles also forces the injector to slow down the injection rate, which can reduce the pain of the patient
Measured: At the time of surgery
Inject swollen fluid
In this study, a 0.7mm needle was used to inject lidocaine into the skin around the puncture point, which can be replaced with a 0.5mm needle to slow down the injection rate of lidocaine, reduce the stinging sensation of the patient, and place the vascular sheath after the local anesthetic infiltrates the skin, which can slightly reduce the pain of the vascular sheath entering the blood vessel through the skin. Similarly, a 0.7mm needle is used to inject swelling fluid from the puncture point along the main trunk of the saphenous vein, the longer the length of the patient's ablation vein, the number of skin breaks will increase, but the patient's pain will not increase with the accumulation of skin breaks, and the operator can reduce the pain of the patient's injection of swelling fluid by squeezing, pressing, stretching the skin, and inserting the needle vertically
Measured: At the time of surgery
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted6 Jul 2026
- Study start1 Jul 2024
- Primary completion1 Sep 2024
- Study completion1 Sep 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (7)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Vascular Diseases, PeripheralStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Observational
- Observational model
- Other
- Time perspective
- Prospective
- Enrolment
- 155 participants (actual)
- Target duration
- 1 Day
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Chunshui He, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07683871
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- chengduUTCMvs6
- Status last verified
- Jul 2024
- First submitted
- 29 Jul 2024
- Last updated
- 6 Jul 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Kubat E, Unal CS, Geldi O, Cetin E, Keskin A. What is the optimal treatment technique for great saphenous vein diameter of >/=10 mm? Comparison of five different approaches. Acta Chir Belg. 2021 Apr;121(2):94-101. doi: 10.1080/00015458.2019.1684008. Epub 2019 Oct 25.
PubMed 31635532Bozoglan O, Mese B, Eroglu E, Erdogan MB, Erdem K, Ekerbicer HC, Yasim A. Comparison of Endovenous Laser and Radiofrequency Ablation in Treating Varicose Veins in the Same Patient. Vasc Endovascular Surg. 2016 Jan;50(1):47-51. doi: 10.1177/1538574415625813. Epub 2016 Jan 14.
PubMed 26767802Nandhra S, Wallace T, El-Sheikha J, Leung C, Carradice D, Chetter I. A Randomised Clinical Trial of Buffered Tumescent Local Anaesthesia During Endothermal Ablation for Superficial Venous Incompetence. Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2018 Nov;56(5):699-708. doi: 10.1016/j.ejvs.2018.05.017. Epub 2018 Jun 29.
PubMed 30392525Cepeda MS, Tzortzopoulou A, Thackrey M, Hudcova J, Arora Gandhi P, Schumann R. Adjusting the pH of lidocaine for reducing pain on injection. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010 Dec 8;(12):CD006581. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD006581.pub2.
PubMed 21154371Arendt-Nielsen L, Egekvist H, Bjerring P. Pain following controlled cutaneous insertion of needles with different diameters. Somatosens Mot Res. 2006 Mar-Jun;23(1-2):37-43. doi: 10.1080/08990220600700925.
PubMed 16846958Egekvist H, Bjerring P, Arendt-Nielsen L. Pain and mechanical injury of human skin following needle insertions. Eur J Pain. 1999 Mar;3(1):41-49. doi: 10.1053/eujp.1998.0099.
PubMed 10700336Gill HS, Prausnitz MR. Does needle size matter? J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2007 Sep;1(5):725-9. doi: 10.1177/193229680700100517.
PubMed 19885141
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 6 Jul 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related Factors
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07683871
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- chengduUTCMvs6
- Keywords
- Varicose veins of the lower extremities, Radiofrequency Ablation, intraoperative pain, visual analogue scale
- Study type
- Observational
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 155 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese MedicineUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Jul 2024 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 1 Sep 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 1 Sep 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 6 Jul 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Objective: This study is a single-center prospective observational study, which recorded the pain scores of patients at four time nodes during surgery (puncture and catheterization, injection of swelling fluid, radiofrequency generator work, and end of surgery), and analyzed the correlation between intraoperative pain and age, gender, BMI and other factors, so as to summarize and improve the details of surgery and reduce patients' intraoperative pain.
Detailed description
Although the global vascular surgeons have made significant progress in the study of RFA in the treatment of VVs, there are still many unknown areas to be explored, and the current research mainly focuses on the surgical effect of RFA and related complications, while the research on intraoperative pain is relatively scarce. First of all, RFA does not have a clear definition of intraoperative pain in the treatment of varicose veins of the lower extremities, so it has not received enough attention in clinical practice, and many doctors regard the success of surgery as the end point of treatment, but ignore the impact of intraoperative pain on the patient's surgical experience. In addition, with the continuous progress of varicose vein surgery of the lower extremities, the anesthesia method has also changed from general anesthesia to combined spinal-epidural block to today's local anesthesia, the swollen anesthetic solution is the main anesthetic drug used in RFA surgery, and the infiltration of the swollen anesthetic fluid around the saphenous vein is the key to the success of RFA, but paradoxically, this is also the most intense part of the patient's pain, the swollen fluid is usually a crystalloid solution containing local anesthetic and epinephrine, which is acidic in nature, which is also the main reason for the "tingling" during skin infiltration , A Cochrane review noted that adjusting the pH of lidocaine solution by adding sodium bicarbonate significantly reduced the pain reported on a 10 cm visual analogue scale (VAS) during skin infiltration, and that the temperature of the swollen anesthetic solution also had an effect on pain during skin infiltration, Bell et al. and Alonso et al. In a prospective randomized controlled trial, it was found that heating the local anesthetic solution to 37°C and 42°C reduced pain sensation, and heating the local anesthetic solution containing epinephrine to near body temperature was effective in reducing the pain of local anesthetic infiltration in patients, however, in a randomized clinical trial in 2018, patients were divided into cold swollen fluid group (4 °C) and room temperature swollen fluid group (24 °C), and the authors found that patients in the cold swollen fluid group had less pain during and after RFA, The amount of postoperative analgesics was significantly reduced. Therefore, the patient's pain during RFA has become a problem that we must pay attention to, and the operator should pay attention to the details and pay attention to the patient's intraoperative condition during RFA, so as to reduce the patient's intraoperative pain and give the patient a better surgical experience.
Study design
- Observational model
- Other
- Time perspective
- Prospective
- Target follow-up
- 1 Day
- Number of arms
- 1
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related Factors | – | Procedure: VAS scores of the punctureAmong the 155 patients were evaluated by our team with CEAP grading and ultrasound measurements to record the diameter of the saphenous vein before surgery, and the procedure of radiofrequency ablation of the saphenous vein trunk supplemented with sclerotherapy was applied to record the data of the operating room temperature, puncture site, and the VAS scores of the puncture and tube placement, injection of the swelling fluid, radiofrequency generator, and the end of the procedure. The patients' intraoperative pain scores were descriptively analyzed to assess the degree of intraoperative pain, and non，parametric tests were applied to analyze the correlation between preoperative and intraoperative factors and intraoperative pain. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 90 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
- Study population
- Patients diagnosed with primary VVs from April 2023 to September 2023 who were admitted to the hospital and underwent RFA treatment for the main trunk of the saphenous vein
Key inclusion criteria (7 listed)
- Age≥ 18 years old, ≤ 90 years old;
- the patient's life expectancy is greater than 12 months;
- The clinical diagnosis is primary VVs, CEAP classification C2-C6, and the GSV segment needs to be treated, including pain, burning sensation, heaviness, fatigue, itchy skin, night cramps and other clinical symptoms;
- Doppler ultrasound confirmed that the diameter of GSV was greater than 3mm and less than 12mm when standing;
- Doppler ultrasound confirms that GSV is located in the saphenofascia or the distance between GSV and the skin surface is >1cm;
Key exclusion criteria (12 listed)
- GSV thrombosis, or combined with deep vein thrombosis, or previous history of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism;
- patients with recurrence after prior VVs-related surgery (C2r);
- the GSV trunk is severely distorted, and it is expected that the catheter will not be able to pass;
- Severe ischemia of the lower limbs, Ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI) < 0.8;
- Known allergy to the drugs and device materials involved in the study;
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| VAS scores of the puncture | Procedure or surgery | Observation of Pain During Radiofrequency Ablation of Saphenous Vein，and Analysis of Related Factors |
Primary outcome
Puncture catheterization
Time frame: At the time of surgery
The pain during puncture and catheterization mainly comes from needle breakage, local anesthetic infiltration and vascular sheath insertion, the 7F vascular puncture sheath group was used in this study, the diameter of the puncture needle is 1.27mm, the pain during skin puncture is stronger than that of the syringe needle used for intravenous or intramuscular injection, there is a well-designed randomized controlled use of an automatic injection device to standardize the injection parameters, and the use of smaller needles also forces the injector to slow down the injection rate, which can reduce the pain of the patient
Inject swollen fluid
Time frame: At the time of surgery
In this study, a 0.7mm needle was used to inject lidocaine into the skin around the puncture point, which can be replaced with a 0.5mm needle to slow down the injection rate of lidocaine, reduce the stinging sensation of the patient, and place the vascular sheath after the local anesthetic infiltrates the skin, which can slightly reduce the pain of the vascular sheath entering the blood vessel through the skin. Similarly, a 0.7mm needle is used to inject swelling fluid from the puncture point along the main trunk of the saphenous vein, the longer the length of the patient's ablation vein, the number of skin breaks will increase, but the patient's pain will not increase with the accumulation of skin breaks, and the operator can reduce the pain of the patient's injection of swelling fluid by squeezing, pressing, stretching the skin, and inserting the needle vertically
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 6 Jul 2026.
- Results publication: PubMed 31635532Kubat E, Unal CS, Geldi O, Cetin E, Keskin A. What is the optimal treatment technique for great saphenous vein diameter of >/=10 mm? Comparison of five different approaches. Acta Chir Belg. 2021 Apr;121(2):94-101. doi: 10.1080/00015458.2019.1684008. Epub 2019 Oct 25.
- Results publication: PubMed 26767802Bozoglan O, Mese B, Eroglu E, Erdogan MB, Erdem K, Ekerbicer HC, Yasim A. Comparison of Endovenous Laser and Radiofrequency Ablation in Treating Varicose Veins in the Same Patient. Vasc Endovascular Surg. 2016 Jan;50(1):47-51. doi: 10.1177/1538574415625813. Epub 2016 Jan 14.
- Results publication: PubMed 30392525Nandhra S, Wallace T, El-Sheikha J, Leung C, Carradice D, Chetter I. A Randomised Clinical Trial of Buffered Tumescent Local Anaesthesia During Endothermal Ablation for Superficial Venous Incompetence. Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg. 2018 Nov;56(5):699-708. doi: 10.1016/j.ejvs.2018.05.017. Epub 2018 Jun 29.
- Results publication: PubMed 21154371Cepeda MS, Tzortzopoulou A, Thackrey M, Hudcova J, Arora Gandhi P, Schumann R. Adjusting the pH of lidocaine for reducing pain on injection. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010 Dec 8;(12):CD006581. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD006581.pub2.
- Results publication: PubMed 16846958Arendt-Nielsen L, Egekvist H, Bjerring P. Pain following controlled cutaneous insertion of needles with different diameters. Somatosens Mot Res. 2006 Mar-Jun;23(1-2):37-43. doi: 10.1080/08990220600700925.
- Results publication: PubMed 10700336Egekvist H, Bjerring P, Arendt-Nielsen L. Pain and mechanical injury of human skin following needle insertions. Eur J Pain. 1999 Mar;3(1):41-49. doi: 10.1053/eujp.1998.0099.
- Results publication: PubMed 19885141Gill HS, Prausnitz MR. Does needle size matter? J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2007 Sep;1(5):725-9. doi: 10.1177/193229680700100517.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
An observational study of Vascular Diseases, Peripheral and Venous Insufficiency of Leg, run by Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine at 1 site in China.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 7 inclusion and 12 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 6 Jul 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in China. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Puncture catheterization (time frame: At the time of surgery). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT07683871, which also lists 7 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 6 Jul 2026.