Michael Ferraro

RESEARCHER PROFILE

Michael Ferraro

Current Appointment

Trial Manager

m.ferraro@neura.edu.au

Researcher Bio

Michael Ferraro is a clinical researcher and trial manager for the MEMOIR clinical trial. He is member of the Centre for Pain IMPACT, led by Associate Professor James McAuley. Michael’s interests include prognosis research, in particular, the use of prognostic models, which combine multiple patient characteristics to provide individualised risk predictions. He is also interested in the use of medicines for pain and the combination of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions to improve patient outcomes. Michael’s research has been presented both nationally and internationally.

In the MEMOIR trial, Michael will be investigating the efficacy and effectiveness of two novel treatments for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome.

Projects Michael Ferraro is currently involved with

CURRENT PROJECTS

MEMOIR – a clinical trial for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

SAURAB SHARMA, PROFESSOR JAMES MCAULEY, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR SYLVIA GUSTIN, MICHAEL FERRARO, DR HOPIN LEE, AIDAN CASHIN, ANIKA HAIGH

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a disabling pain disorder, affecting approximately 5,000 people in Australia annually. 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.

The MEMOIR Trial is a Commonwealth Government-funded, randomised controlled trial testing two novel treatments for CRPS. MEMOIR will test whether a drug, memantine, and a rehabilitation program, Graded Motor Imagery (GMI), produce greater improvements in pain intensity and function than placebo and standard care for CRPS.

The MEMOIR trial will be delivered remotely, via Telehealth, allowing Australia-wide recruitment of participants. Recruitment for MEMOIR will begin in early 2021. If you are interested in being contacted once recruitment has begun, please enter your details below.

MEMOIR Investigators

MEMOIR consolidates the expertise of scientists and clinicians:

A/Prof James McAuley, School of Medical Sciences & NeuRA, University of New South Wales
A/Prof Sylvia Gustin, School of Psychology & NeuRA, University of New South Wales
Prof Andrew McLachlan, Dean of Pharmacy, University of Sydney
Prof Lorimer Moseley, University of South Australia
Prof Benedict Wand, School of Physiotherapy, University of Notre Dame Australia
Dr Neil O’Connell, Brunel University London
Dr Hopin Lee, University of Oxford
Prof Eric Visser, School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Australia
Prof Sallie Lamb, University of Exeter
Mr Michael Ferraro, NeuRA, University of New South Wales

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MEMOIR – a clinical trial for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

Medicines for Back Pain

DR MARKUS HüBSCHER, PROFESSOR JAMES MCAULEY, MATTHEW K BAGG, MICHAEL WEWEGE, MICHAEL FERRARO, RODRIGO RIZZO, HAYLEY LEAKE, PAULINE ZAHARA, EDEL O’HAGAN, AIDAN CASHIN, THIAGO FOLLY, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR SYLVIA GUSTIN, DR MATTHEW JONES, DR MARKUS HUEBSCHER

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