Articles: low-back-pain.
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During a semi-structured interview 82 migraine patients were asked biographical and illnessrelated questions. They completed psychological instruments on coping behavior (Stressverarbeitungsfragebogen), self-concept (Frankfurter Selbstkonzeptskalen), attributional style (IE-SV-F), illness behavior, and illness-related attributions (Tübinger Attributions-fragebogen). The theoretical background of this research is a cognitive model of coping with stress and illness. ⋯ Some of the pain behavior strategies could be identified as being focused on illness (guarding behavior, avoidance and social withdrawal, resignation and complaint); only the attempt to relax is regarded as being focused on health. Migraine patients show a preference neither for medical nor psychological causal attributions of their illness but score significantly higher on medical than psychological control attributions. The results have implications for psychological therapy.
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This epidemiological questionnaire-study of 362 patients suffering from chronic pain related to musculoskeletal disorders showed the following results: Most musculoskeletal pain syndromes are located in the head and back areas (57.3%). Patients who seek treatment in an orthopedic pain clinic suffer from at least moderate pain according to the verbal rating scale and from pain equal too or more than 50 on to the numeric rating scale. For most patients (51.9%) the duration of the pain has been between 1 and 10 years. ⋯ Most patients with chronic pain consult 2 to 6 doctors. For typical orthopedic pain syndromes most patients consult an orthopedist. Patients with chronic headaches consult an orthopedic specialist about as frequently as neurologist or internist specialist.
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An outpatient treatment programme for pain control was applied in 25 chronic pain patients in three general medical practices, supervised by a medical psychologist as a group therapist. The patients has been suffering from headaches, migraines, cervical pain, shoulder and arm pain, and low back pain for at least 6 months. A sample of 20 patients with the same disorders served as a control group which waiting for treatment. ⋯ Nonetheless, all the subjects treated showed improvements in their average scores for trait anxiety, depression and symptoms complaints compared with the untreated controls. Our results indicate a long-term improvement in well-being as a result of the treatment. Treatment adherence seems to be the most important factor in the maintenance of long-term reduction of pain intensity.
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J Orthop Sports Phys Ther · Jan 1989
Investigation of the flexible ruler as a noninvasive measure of lumbar lordosis in black and white adult female sample populations.
The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private views of the authors and are not to be construed as official or reflecting the views of the Army, the Department of Defense, or the U. S. Government. ⋯ The criterion validity of the flexible ruler as a measure of actual lumbosacral lordosis was poor (Pearsons' Correlation Coefficient = 0.30, N = 45). Because of the poor criterion validity of the flexible ruler compared to roentgenographically confirmed lumbar lordosis, the flexible ruler has questionable clinical value in the assessment of lumbar lordosis. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1989;11(1):3-7.
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Psychological methods for the treatment of chronic pain have been developed within the contextual framework of behavioral medicine during the past few years. Some of these self-control approaches focus on the patient's capacity to cope actively with pain. Standardized self-control training for outpatient group treatment for patients with chronic pain is described. ⋯ Thirty-three patients with chronic back pain were assigned either to one of four treatment groups (n=22) or to a waiting list control group (n=11). After 12 sessions of group treatment, patients showed significant improvement regarding daily ratings of pain intensity and mood and a significant decrease in depression and general physical complaints other than pain; the waiting list patients remained the same. Results showed good maintenance at the half-year follow-up.