Emotional Pain

The Stanford Chronic Pain Self-Management Programme (CPSMP) consists of six 2½-hour weekly workshops focusing on how to manage pain in daily life. The workshops are facilitated by two workshop leaders of whom at least one must suffer from a long-term pain condition. The program is highly structured and manualized. Only few controlled trials testing the effect of CPSMP exist.Enrolled in the study were 424 adults from 19 Danish municipalities, (72% women; age: 25-93 years) with pain of any etiology and great variation in pain history (0-50 yrs)...

The purpose of this study was to assess the association of GI events with HRQoL and treatment satisfaction. The effect of baseline GI events persisted through 1 year of follow-up, as indicated by lower EQ-5D, OPAQ-SV, and treatment satisfaction scores among patients with vs without baseline GI events. The presence of GI events is an independent predictor of decreased HRQoL and treatment satisfaction in patients being treated for osteoporosis. INTRODUCTION: The goal of this study was to assess the association of gastrointestinal (GI) events with health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and treatment satisfaction in patients being treated for osteoporosis...

Fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome is characterized by chronic widespread pain, muscle tenderness and emotional distress. Previous studies found reduced endogenous pain modulation in FM. This deficiency of pain modulation may be related to the attributes of chronic pain and other clinical symptoms experienced in patients with FM. Thus, we tested whether there is a link between the clinical symptoms of FM and functional connectivity (FC) of the periaqueductal gray (PAG), a key node of pain modulation. We acquired resting state 3T functional MRI (rsfMRI) data from 23 female patients with FM and 16 age- and sex- matched healthy controls (HC) and assessed FM symptoms with the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS)...

OBJECTIVE: To explore whether negative emotions expressed by adolescent cancer survivors during follow-up consultations were associated with potential late effects (persisting disease or treatment-related health problems). METHODS: We video-recorded 66 follow-up consultations between 10 pediatricians and 66 adolescent survivors of leukemia, lymphoma or stem-cell transplantations. In transcripts of the recordings, we identified utterances coded as both 1) expressions of negative emotions (VR-CoDES), and 2) late effect-related discussions...

OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cancer recurs in most patients, with a 5-year survival rate less than 30%. Quality of life is an increasingly important issue in patients with cancer, but there are limited data in women with recurrent ovarian cancer in this regard. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We used an ad hoc questionnaire to compare changes in health perceptions, burden of disease, and expectations for the future quality of life in women with and without recurrence of ovarian cancer...

Context:Broken heart syndrome or Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC) is a disorder characterized by transient left ventricular apical ballooning that almost invariably precedes emotional or physical stress. Although the patients with chronic kidney disease on hemodialysis have shown to exhibit sustained activity of sympathetic nervous system, the presentation of TC in these patients is a rare entity with few case reports in the literature. Case Report: A 75-year-old female with past medical history of end-stage renal disease presented with chest pressure and heaviness that started during her maintenance hemodialysis session...

BACKGROUND: Information on physical and mental wellness in renal transplantation is limited. Therefore, we performed a cross-sectional study to evaluate and describe the different components of physical performance and quality of life (QoL) in a cohort of kidney-transplanted patients. METHODS: Physical performance and QoL were determined through the administration of validated tests and questionnaires [muscle strength, dynamometer handgrip, tactile sensitivity, visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) and the 36-item Short Form Health Survey]...

BACKGROUND: Depression typically affects 5% of the general population, but among patients with chronic pain, 30%-45% experience depression. Studies have shown that the relationship between depression and pain is bidirectional: depression is a positive predictor of the development of chronic pain, and chronic pain increases the risk of developing depression. METHODS: This literature review focuses on the relationship between psychology and pain, covering studies that have investigated the association between depression, pain sensitivity, opioid abuse, and gender differences in pain perception...

Functional connectivity (FC) has been used to investigate the pathophysiology of migraine. We aimed to identify atypical FC between the periaqueductal gray (PAG) and other brain areas in rats induced by repeated meningeal nociception. The rat model was established by infusing an inflammatory soup (IS) through supradural catheters in conscious rats. Quiescent and face-grooming behaviors were observed to assess nociceptive behavior. FC analysis seeded on the PAG was performed on rats 21 days after IS infusion...

OBJECTIVES: Psychosocial factors play an important role in the development and subsequent recovery of individuals suffering from chronic low back pain (CLBP). The study explored physiotherapists' personal beliefs and knowledge about the biopsychosocial model and the different ways they assess and manage psychosocial factors in patients presenting with CLBP. METHODS: Qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews and a constructivist grounded theory approach to data collection and analysis...

PURPOSE: To describe experiences of shoulder pain after stroke, how pain affects daily life and perceived effects of interventions. METHOD: A qualitative interview study including 13 community-dwelling persons (six women; median age 65 years) with persistent shoulder pain after stroke. RESULTS: Three categories emerged from the content analysis. In "Multiple pain characteristics" an insidious pain onset was reported. The pain existed both day and night and could be located around the shoulder girdle but also have radiation to the arm and hand...

The goal of this study was to identify a relevant and inclusive list of quality of life issues among long-term survivors of melanoma. Individuals diagnosed with stage I-III cutaneous melanoma and had survived 1-5 years, ages 18-65 years at diagnosis, were recruited. Five focus groups were conducted with 33 participants in total. Discussions centered on participants' experiences at diagnosis, as well as ongoing physical, emotional, and social concerns, and behavioral changes since diagnosis. The majority of participants reported shock, fear, and feeling overwhelmed at the time of diagnosis...

More knowledge is needed about men with sex chromosome aneuploidies (SCA). We present self-reported data from 53 men with SCA (Mage = 36.8 years, SD = 12.3, range 19-67). The Health Survey-Short Form (SF-36) measured eight health domains (physical functioning, role-physical, role-emotional, vitality, emotional health, social functioning, pain, general health). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index measured sleep problems. The Personal Wellbeing Index measured satisfaction with eight life domains. Compared to norms, SCA reported poorer health (mean d = -0...

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) has been shown to have clinical utility in the assessment of individuals with chronic pain (e.g., predicting surgical outcomes). The purpose of this study was to explore the ability of the MMPI-2-RF Validity Scales in profiling patients with chronic pain who had external financial incentive (e.g., workers' compensation claims) and determine the associations between Validity Scale response patterns and important outcomes. Cluster analysis identified 2 similarly sized clusters of patients with very different MMPI-2-RF profiles...

Chronic pain states are highly prevalent and yet poorly controlled by currently available analgesics, representing an enormous clinical, societal, and economic burden. Existing pain medications have significant limitations and adverse effects including tolerance, dependence, gastrointestinal dysfunction, cognitive impairment, and a narrow therapeutic window, making the search for novel analgesics ever more important. In this article, we review the role of an important endogenous pain control system, the endocannabinoid (EC) system, in the sensory, emotional, and cognitive aspects of pain...

BACKGROUND: Higher survival rates for breast cancer patients have led to concerns in dealing with short- and long-term side effects. The most common complications are impairment of shoulder functions, pain, lymphedema, and dysesthesia of the injured arm; psychological consequences concern: emotional distress, anxiety, and depression, thereby, deeply impacting/affecting daily living activity, and health-related quality of life. OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic review for assessing the efficacy or effectiveness of interventions aiming at improving health-related quality of life, return to daily activity, and correct lifestyles among breast cancer patients...

Synopsis Chronic neck pain is common and a primary clinical symptom of whiplash and other spinal injuries. Loading-induced neck injuries produce abnormal kinematics between the vertebrae, with the potential to injure facet joints and the afferent fibers that innervate the specific joint tissues, including the capsular ligament. Mechanoreceptive and nociceptive afferents that innervate the facet have their peripheral terminals in the capsule, cell bodies in the dorsal root ganglia, and terminal processes in the spinal cord...

BACKGROUND: Evidence consistently shows that people with advanced dementia experience suboptimal end of life care compared to those with cancer; with increased hospitalisation, inadequate pain control and fewer palliative care interventions. Understanding the views of those service managers and frontline staff who organise and provide care is crucial in order to develop better end of life care for people with dementia. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Qualitative interviews and focus groups were conducted from 2013 to 2015 with 33 service managers and 54 staff involved in frontline care, including doctors, nurses, nursing and care home managers, service development leads, senior managers/directors, care assistants and senior care assistants/team leads...

OBJECTIVE: It has been hypothesised that clinically important age-related differences between adults with anxiety disorders exist; this study aims to elucidate these differences. METHODS: We analysed data from 1950 outpatients diagnosed with DSM-IV-TR anxiety disorders treated at a Dutch hospital or affiliated mental healthcare centres. Three age-groups (young- (18-25; n = 435), mid- (26-40; n = 788) and older adult (41-65; n = 727)) were compared with regard to social demographic characteristics, diagnostic characteristics, anxiety symptom profile, general psychiatric symptom profile and generic health status, in addition, linear analyses were carried out with age as a continuous variable...

Our aim was to prospectively investigate the impact of Behçet's disease (BD), disease activity, and clinical and demographic characteristics on different aspects of quality of life (QoL) measured by the short-form (SF)-36 QoL scale. We administered the SF-36 to 37 consecutive BD patients in different moments of disease activity, and to 23 healthy controls (HC). The eight subcategories of the SF-36 underwent statistical analysis for identifying differences and correlations. Compared to HC, BD patients showed significantly lower mean scores in all SF-36 QoL subscales except mental health and role-emotional...