European journal of pain : EJP
-
Chronic pain is known to be an important construct in clinical practice and a particular form of chronic pain, high-impact chronic pain (HICP), has gained recent interest and attention by pain clinicians, epidemiologists, and clinical researchers. The purpose of our Topical Review is to describe the historical development of measures of HICP and to explore the psychometric properties of HICP as well as to present alternative measurement methods. ⋯ This work takes the position that current methods of measuring high impact chronic pain (HICP) likely contain substantial error. We have endorsed an alternative approach for several psychometrically grounded reasons. We recommend that future work consider the discrete latent variable framework for dichotomous measures of HICP and the continuous latent variable framework for continuous measures of HICP. The paper provides illustrative examples of these methods for a different patient reported measure that is lacking a gold standard, much like HICP measures.
-
Prior exposure to others' facial expressions of pain can lead to a facilitation of pain responses, including its corresponding response channel, namely facial responses to pain. It has been questioned, however, whether this vicarious pain facilitation occurs only when observing others' pain or whether the observation of other negative expressions can trigger similar facilitation of facial responses to pain. The study aimed to test this, by comparing the impact of viewing others' facial expressions of pain versus another negative expression (sadness) and two control expressions (neutral, happiness) on facial responses to pain. ⋯ Facial responses to pain - along with subjective and autonomic responses - are reduced when observing others' expressions of happiness, demonstrating pain modulation by positive affective social signals, which may also transfer to clinical contexts.
-
Pain is the leading cause of disability and reduced quality of life worldwide. Despite the increasing burden for patients and healthcare systems, pain research remains underfunded and under focused. Having stakeholders identify and prioritize areas that need urgent attention in the field will help focus funding topics, reduce 'research waste', improve the effectiveness of pain research and therapy and promote the uptake of research evidence. In this study, the European Pain Federation (EFIC) developed a Pain Research Strategy for Europe. ⋯ EFIC has developed a Pain Research Strategy for Europe that identifies pain research areas deserving the most focus and financial support. Implementation and wide dissemination of this Strategy is vital to increase the conduct of urgent pain projects, pain research funding and the implementation of research findings into practice, to ultimately decrease the personal, societal and financial burden of pain.
-
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has been found to be beneficial for individuals dealing with chronic pain. The theoretical mechanisms of change proposed by ACT are based on the Hexaflex model. To comprehensively reflect this model, the Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory (MPFI) and Psy-Flex have been developed. The study aimed to adapt the MPFI-24 and the Psy-Flex for Spanish-speaking populations with chronic pain and to examine their dimensionality, internal consistency, convergent validity and incremental validity. ⋯ Practitioners and researchers in chronic pain will find the Spanish versions of the MPFI-24 and the Psy-Flex here, along with recommendations for their use and scoring based on a robust psychometric rationale. It should be noted that these measures surpass the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ) and the Psychological Inflexibility in Pain Scale (PIPS), which are considered gold standards in chronic pain assessment.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial
Predictors of subacute postoperative pain after total knee arthroplasty: A secondary analysis of two randomized trials.
Methods for identifying high-pain responders undergoing total knee arthroplasty remain important to improve individualized pain management. This study aimed at evaluating pre- and perioperative predictors of pain on Days 2-7 after total knee arthroplasty. ⋯ This study investigated factors associated with pain after total knee arthroplasty beyond the immediate postoperative period. The analysis revealed significant associations between preoperative pain levels and, particularly, pain 24 h postoperatively, with subsequent subacute pain the following week. These findings can assist in identifying patients who would benefit from enhanced, individualized analgesic interventions to facilitate postoperative recovery.