Matthew K Bagg
RESEARCHER PROFILE
PhD candidate
+61 2 9399 1870
Matthew is a clinical scientist and physiotherapist, nearing completion of his PhD. Matthew’s PhD work aims to improve treatment for persistent back pain through improved understanding of current treatments and development of new treatments. Back pain is a common, costly and disabling condition. People experience little to no benefit, on average, from available treatments.
Medicines (given for pain relief) are the most common treatment, yet the research available to guide their use is lacking in some areas. Matthew’s research (within the Medicines for Back Pain program) uses published and unpublished sources of clinical trial information to fill these gaps and increase the research available to guide clinical decision-making.
Treatments targeting brain function are a promising, novel, approach to treatment of back pain. These treatments have been developed because research indicates the brain and nervous system are importantly involved in the back pain experience. We developed two treatment programs and tested them in the RESOLVE Trial). We have completed recruitment and are preparing to analyse the results.
You can follow Matthew’s research below and here.
In addition to his research focus, Matthew is passionately engaged with clinical practice and research more broadly. Matthew is an active member of the Australian Pain Society, Sports Medicine Australia, the Australian Physiotherapy Association and the Living Evidence Network. Matthew sits on the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) Education and Training Committee, which strives to facilitate the use of evidence in clinical and research practice. Matthew is an Ambassador for the Centre for Open Science and a founding member of OPeRA (Open Pain Research Appraisal and Advocacy). OPeRA members are early-career scientists working together to conduct meta-science (research on how research is done) and advocate for transparent and open scientific practice. Transparent and open practice is important to allow users of research to understand and evaluate research whilst they use it. You can follow (and join) OPeRA’s work here.
Projects Matthew K Bagg is currently involved with
CURRENT PROJECTS
AGReMA – A Guideline for Reporting Mediation Analyses
There are a growing number of studies using mediation analysis to understand the mechanisms of health interventions and exposures. Recent work has shown that the reporting of these studies is heterogenous and incomplete. This problem stifles clinical application, reproducibility, and evidence synthesis. The development and implementation of A Guideline for Reporting Mediation Analyses (AGReMA) will improve the standardization, transparency, and completeness in the reporting of studies that use mediation analysis to understand the mechanisms of health interventions and exposures.
AGReMA Publications
Cashin AG, McAuley JH, Lamb SE, Hopewell S, Kamper SJ, Williams CM, Henschke N, Lee H. (2020). Development of A Guideline for Reporting Mediation Analyses (AGReMA). BMC Med Res Methodol 20(1):19. doi: 10.1186/s12874-020-0915-5. PMID: 32013883
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AGReMA – A Guideline for Reporting Mediation Analyses
Medicines for Back Pain
Medicines are the most common treatment for back pain. The aim of this program of research is to improve our understanding of the clinical effects of medicines.
Studies currently in progress:
- Scoping review of paracetamol, NSAIDs and opioid analgesics for chronic low back pain (led by Matthew K Bagg). The objective of this study is to identify and describe the characteristics of available clinical trials of commonly used analgesic medicines for chronic low back pain. This information will inform the design and conduct of other studies in the research program.
- Paracetamol, NSAIDs and opioid analgesics for chronic low back pain: a network meta-analysis (led by Matthew K Bagg). The objective of this study is to produce information about the clinical effects of available analgesic medicines for chronic low back pain. This information will be available in a Cochrane review to assist clinical prescription of medicines. The protocol is published and available here.
- Prescribing practices of medicines for adults with low back pain: a systematic review (led by Michael Wewege). The objective of this study is to determine how different medicines are prescribed to adults with low back pain and how this differs across countries. The protocol for this study is being developed.
- Analgesic medicines for adults with low back pain: a network meta-analysis (led by Michael Wewege). The objective of this study is to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of a range of analgesic medicines for adults across different classifications of low back pain. The protocol for this study has been submitted for publication.
- Muscle relaxant medicines for low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis (led by Aidan Cashin and Thiago Folly). The objective of this study is to determine the effectiveness and tolerability of muscle relaxant medicines for adults with low back pain. The protocol is available here.
- Novel biologic medicines for low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis (led by Rodrigo Rizzo). The objective of this study is to determine the effectiveness and tolerability of novel biologic medicines for adults with low back pain. The protocol is available here.
Completed studies:
- Evaluation of the impact of unpublished data from clinical trial registries on the effects of medicines for low back pain (led by Matthew Bagg). The objective of this study was to evaluate whether there is a difference between clinical trial data that are published and those that are not published. The findings are published in the Journal of Clinical Epidemiology.
- Antidepressant medicines for low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis (led by Michael Ferraro). The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness and tolerability of antidepressant medicines for adults with low back pain. The findings have been submitted for publication. The protocol is available here.
Medicines for Back Pain – Publications:
- Bagg MK, McLachlan AJ, Maher CG, Kamper SJ, Williams CM, Henschke N, Wand BM, Moseley GL, Hübscher M, O’Connell NE, van Tulder MW, Nikolakopoulou A, McAuley JH. (2018). Paracetamol, NSAIDS and opioid analgesics for chronic low back pain: a network meta-analysis [Protocol]. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Issue 6. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD013045. PMCID: PMC6513465
- Bagg MK, O’Hagan E, Zahara P, Wand BM, Hübscher M, Moseley GL, McAuley JH. (2020). Reviews may overestimate the effectiveness of medicines for back pain: systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology. doi: 10.1016/ j.jclinepi.2019.12.006. PMID: 31816418
Medicines for Back Pain – Registrations of Study Protocols:
- Folly T, Bagg MK, Wewege M, Ferraro MC, Schabrun S, Gustin SM, Day R, McAuley JH. (2019) UMbRELLA: Understanding efficacy and safety of Muscle RELaxant medicines for Low back pain – systematic Literature review and meta-Analysis (protocol).Open Science Framework, available at: https://osf.io/xuw5h
- Rizzo RN, Bagg MK, Ferraro MC, Wewege M, Cashin A, Leake HB, O’Hagan E, Jones M, McAuley JH. (2020). Efficacy and safety of medicines targeting neurotrophic factors in the management of low back pain: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis. Open Science Framework, available at: https://osf.io/zax6d
- Ferraro MC, Bagg MK, McAuley JH. (2019). RADICAL: Systematic Review of Anti-Depressant Medicines if Considered Analgesics for Low Back Pain (protocol). Open Science Framework, available at: https://osf.io/cedm3
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Medicines for Back Pain
RESOLVE Trial for Chronic Low Back Pain
For people with long term back pain that is not getting better. We are testing two pain treatment programs that target the brain, for people with chronic low back pain.READ MORE
RESOLVE Trial for Chronic Low Back Pain
MEMOIR – a clinical trial for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a serious health condition, affecting approximately 20,000 people in Australia. It is characterised by severe burning, stinging and stabbing pain. People with CRPS are unable to use their painful limb and their ability to work or participate in normal social activities is severely restricted. Currently, there are no effective treatments for CRPS.
A vast body of research has demonstrated changes in brain processes in CRPS. The MEMOIR trial will investigate the effectiveness of two novel brain-directed treatments to reduce pain and improve function in people with CRPS.
MEMOIR consolidates the expertise of scientists and clinicians from NeuRA (A/Prof James McAuley, A/Prof Sylvia Gustin, Mr Michael Ferraro), the University of South Australia (Prof Lorimer Moseley), the University of Sydney (Prof Andrew McLachlan), the University of Notre Dame Australia Fremantle (Prof Benedict Wand, Prof Eric Visser), the University of Exeter (Prof Sallie Lamb), Brunel University London (Dr Neil O’Connell) and the University of Oxford (Dr Hopin Lee).
Due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, the commencement of MEMOIR has been delayed. Recruitment for MEMOIR will commence in September 2020.
If you are interested in being contacted about our CRPS research, please leave your details below and we will be in touch once recruitment begins.
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MEMOIR – a clinical trial for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
BACK PAIN: HEALTH INFORMATION
THE BODY IN THE BRAIN – CASE
SPEAKER AT CENTRE FOR OPEN SCIENCE WEBINAR ON “ADVOCATING FOR CHANGE IN HOW SCIENCE IS CONDUCTED TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD”, AUGUST 22 2019
INTERVIEW WITH DR MANUELA CALLARI FOR HER ARTICLE “THE BRAIN’S ROLE IN PAIN”, PUBLISHED IN LATERAL MAGAZINE ISSUE 29, OCTOBER 25, 2018
RESEARCH TEAM
THIAGO FOLLY Research Assistant
ANIKA HAIGH Research Assistant
PAULINE ZAHARA Research Assistant
DR IAN SKINNER Postdoctoral Research Fellow
