scholarly journals Alexithymia and Fear of Pain Independently Predict Heat Pain Intensity Ratings among Undergraduate University Students

2009 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 299-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Katz ◽  
Andrea L Martin ◽  
M Gabrielle Pagé ◽  
Vincent Calleri
Keyword(s):  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Emotional Awareness ◽  
Heat Pain ◽  
Fear Of Pain ◽  
Pain Experience ◽  
Pain Anxiety ◽  
Average Heat ◽  
Psychological Constructs ◽  
The Relationship

BACKGROUND: Alexithymia is a disturbance in awareness and cognitive processing of affect that is associated with over-reporting of physical symptoms, including pain. The relationship between alexithymia and other psychological constructs that are often associated with pain has yet to be evaluated.OBJECTIVES: The present study examined the importance of alexithymia in the pain experience in relation to other integral psychological components of Turk’s diathesis-stress model of chronic pain and disability, including fear of pain, anxiety sensitivity, pain avoidance and pain catastrophizing.METHODS: Heat pain stimuli, using a magnitude estimation procedure, and five questionnaires (Anxiety Sensitivity Index, Fear of Pain Questionnaire III, Pain Catastrophizing Scale, avoidance subscale of the Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale-20 and Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20) were administered to 67 undergraduate students (44 women) with a mean (± SD) age of 20.39±3.77 years.RESULTS: Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that sex, fear of pain and alexithymia were the only significant predictors of average heat pain intensity (F[6, 60]=5.43; R2=0.35; P=0.008), accounting for 6.8%, 20.0% and 9.6% of unique variance, respectively. Moreover, the difficulty identifying feelings and difficulty describing feelings subscales, but not the externally oriented thinking subscale of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 significantly predicted average heat pain intensity.CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with higher levels of alexithymia or increased fear of pain reported higher average pain intensity ratings. The relationship between alexithymia and pain intensity was unrelated to other psychological constructs usually associated with pain. These findings suggest that difficulties with emotion regulation, either through reduced emotional awareness via alexithymia or heightened emotional awareness via fear of pain, may negatively impact the pain experience.

scholarly journals Assessment of Pain Anxiety, Pain Catastrophizing, and Fear of Pain in Children and Adolescents With Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 314-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Fisher ◽  
Lauren C Heathcote ◽  
Christopher Eccleston ◽  
Laura E Simons ◽  
Tonya M Palermo
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Generalized Anxiety ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Fear Of Pain ◽  
Pain Anxiety

Abstract Objective To conduct a systematic review of pain anxiety, pain catastrophizing, and fear of pain measures psychometrically established in youth with chronic pain. The review addresses three specific aims: (1) to identify measures used in youth with chronic pain, summarizing their content, psychometric properties, and use; (2) to use evidence-based assessment criteria to rate each measure according to the Society of Pediatric Psychology (SPP) guidelines; (3) to pool data across studies for meta-analysis of shared variance in psychometric performance in relation to the primary outcomes of pain intensity, disability, generalized anxiety, and depression. Methods We searched Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, and relevant literature for possible studies to include. We identified measures studied in youth with chronic pain that assessed pain anxiety, pain catastrophizing, or fear of pain and extracted the item-level content. Study and participant characteristics, and correlation data were extracted for summary and meta-analysis, and measures were rated using the SPP evidence-based assessment criteria. Results Fifty-four studies (84 papers) met the inclusion criteria, including seven relevant measures: one assessed pain anxiety, three pain catastrophizing, and three fear of pain. Overall, five measures were rated as “well established.” We conducted meta-analyses on four measures with available data. We found significant positive correlations with the variables pain intensity, disability, generalized anxiety, and depression. Conclusion Seven measures are available to assess pain anxiety, pain catastrophizing, and fear of pain in young people with chronic pain, and most are well established. We present implications for practice and directions for future research.

The Relationship Between the Pain Experience and Emotion Regulation in Older Adults

Pain Medicine ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 3366-3376
Author(s):  
Omeed Ghandehari ◽  
Natasha L Gallant ◽  
Thomas Hadjistavropoulos ◽  
Jaime Williams ◽  
David A Clark
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Fear Of Pain ◽  
Emotional Suppression ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Objective To investigate the relationship of emotion regulation strategies (i.e., emotional suppression and reappraisal) with pain catastrophizing, fear of pain, pain intensity, worry, and depression as function of age in samples of older and younger adults. Design Cross-sectional design using validated questionnaires. Setting Participants resided in the community. They completed validated measures using online questionnaires. Subjects Two-hundred fifty-seven older adults and 254 younger adults with chronic pain participated. Methods Participants completed validated questionnaires of emotion regulation strategies, pain-related functioning and mental health. Results Emotion regulation varied as a function of age and gender. Among our chronic pain sample, older adult males reported lower use of reappraisal and suppression than younger adult males, while older adult females reported higher use of reappraisal than younger adult females. Emotional suppression was positively related to pain catastrophizing, pain intensity, worry, and depression. Reappraisal was negatively related to depression and worry. Interestingly, age showed a positive relationship with fear of pain, pain catastrophizing, worry, depression, and pain intensity, while gender was related to fear of pain and worry. Finally, emotional reappraisal partially mediated the relationship between the affective dimensions of pain intensity and pain catastrophizing among older adults. Conclusions Our results indicate that reappraisal strategies are important for older and younger adults with chronic pain, pointing to the necessity of considering these strategies when working clinically with such populations. However, given our findings as well as those in the literature, gender should also be considered.

scholarly journals The Influence of Communicative Relations on Facial Responses to Pain: Does It Matter Who Is Watching?

2014 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna J Karmann ◽  
Stefan Lautenbacher ◽  
Florian Bauer ◽  
Miriam Kunz
Keyword(s):  
Facial Pain ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Video Recording ◽  
Heat Pain ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Situational Demands ◽  
Facial Expressiveness ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Healthy Participants

BACKGROUND: Facial responses to pain are believed to be an act of communication and, as such, are likely to be affected by the relationship between sender and receiver.OBJECTIVES: To investigate this effect by examining the impact that variations in communicative relations (from being alone to being with an intimate other) have on the elements of the facial language used to communicate pain (types of facial responses), and on the degree of facial expressiveness.METHODS: Facial responses of 126 healthy participants to phasic heat pain were assessed in three different social situations: alone, but aware of video recording; in the presence of an experimenter; and in the presence of an intimate other. Furthermore, pain catastrophizing and sex (of participant and experimenter) were considered as additional influences.RESULTS: Whereas similar types of facial responses were elicited independent of the relationship between sender and observer, the degree of facial expressiveness varied significantly, with increased expressiveness occurring in the presence of the partner. Interestingly, being with an experimenter decreased facial expressiveness only in women. Pain catastrophizing and the sex of the experimenter exhibited no substantial influence on facial responses.CONCLUSION: Variations in communicative relations had no effect on the elements of the facial pain language. The degree of facial expressiveness, however, was adapted to the relationship between sender and observer. Individuals suppressed their facial communication of pain toward unfamiliar persons, whereas they overtly displayed it in the presence of an intimate other. Furthermore, when confronted with an unfamiliar person, different situational demands appeared to apply for both sexes.

scholarly journals Pain Catastrophizing Moderates Relationships between Pain Intensity and Opioid Prescription

2017 ◽  
Vol 127 (1) ◽  
pp. 136-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasamin Sharifzadeh ◽  
Ming-Chih Kao ◽  
John A. Sturgeon ◽  
Thomas J. Rico ◽  
Sean Mackey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Pain Treatment ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Treatment Center ◽  
Women Patients ◽  
Opioid Prescription ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Background Pain catastrophizing is a maladaptive response to pain that amplifies chronic pain intensity and distress. Few studies have examined how pain catastrophizing relates to opioid prescription in outpatients with chronic pain. Methods The authors conducted a retrospective observational study of the relationships between opioid prescription, pain intensity, and pain catastrophizing in 1,794 adults (1,129 women; 63%) presenting for new evaluation at a large tertiary care pain treatment center. Data were sourced primarily from an open-source, learning health system and pain registry and secondarily from manual review of electronic medical records. A binary opioid prescription variable (yes/no) constituted the dependent variable; independent variables were age, sex, pain intensity, pain catastrophizing, depression, and anxiety. Results Most patients were prescribed at least one opioid medication (57%; n = 1,020). A significant interaction and main effects of pain intensity and pain catastrophizing on opioid prescription were noted (P < 0.04). Additive modeling revealed sex differences in the relationship between pain catastrophizing, pain intensity, and opioid prescription, such that opioid prescription became more common at lower levels of pain catastrophizing for women than for men. Conclusions Results supported the conclusion that pain catastrophizing and sex moderate the relationship between pain intensity and opioid prescription. Although men and women patients had similar Pain Catastrophizing Scale scores, historically “subthreshold” levels of pain catastrophizing were significantly associated with opioid prescription only for women patients. These findings suggest that pain intensity and catastrophizing contribute to different patterns of opioid prescription for men and women patients, highlighting a potential need for examination and intervention in future studies.

scholarly journals Pain catastrophizing, perceived injustice, and pain intensity impair life satisfaction through differential patterns of physical and psychological disruption

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 390-396 ◽  
Author(s):  
John A. Sturgeon ◽  
Maisa S. Ziadni ◽  
Zina Trost ◽  
Beth D. Darnall ◽  
Sean C. Mackey
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Cognitive Appraisal ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Perceived Injustice ◽  
Appraisal Processes ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractBackground and purposePrevious research has highlighted the importance of cognitive appraisal processes in determining the nature and effectiveness of coping with chronic pain. Two of the key variables implicated in appraisal of pain are catastrophizing and perceived injustice, which exacerbate the severity of pain-related distress and increase the risk of long-term disability through maladaptive behavioural responses. However, to date, the influences of these phenomena have not been examined concurrently, nor have they been related specifically to quality of life measures, such as life satisfaction.MethodsUsing data froman online survey of330 individuals with chronic pain, structural path modelling techniques were used to examine the independent effects of pain catastrophizing, perceived injustice, and average pain intensity on life satisfaction. Two potential mediators of these relationships were examined: depressive symptoms and pain-related interference.ResultsResults indicated that depressive symptoms fully mediated the relationship between pain catastrophizing and life satisfaction, and pain interference fully mediated the relationship between pain intensity and life satisfaction. Both depressive symptoms and pain interference were found to significantly mediate the relationship between perceived injustice and life satisfaction, but perceived injustice continued to demonstrate a significant and negative relationship with life satisfaction, above and beyond the other study variables.ConclusionsThe current findings highlight the distinct affective and behavioural mediators of pain and maladaptive cognitive appraisal processes in chronic pain, and highlight their importance in both perceptions of pain-related interference and longer-term quality of life.

scholarly journals Dispositional Affect in Unique Subgroups of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle B. Rice ◽  
Swati Mehta ◽  
Janet E. Pope ◽  
Manfred Harth ◽  
Allan Shapiro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽  
Anxiety Sensitivity ◽  
Experiential Avoidance ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Analysis Of Covariance ◽  
Fear Of Pain ◽  
Pain Anxiety ◽  
Pain Disability

Background. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis may experience increased negative outcomes if they exhibit specific patterns of dispositional affect.Objective. To identify subgroups of patients with rheumatoid arthritis based on dispositional affect. The secondary objective was to compare mood, pain catastrophizing, fear of pain, disability, and quality of life between subgroups.Methods. Outpatients from a rheumatology clinic were categorized into subgroups by a cluster analysis based on dispositional affect. Differences in outcomes were compared between clusters through multivariate analysis of covariance.Results. 227 patients were divided into two subgroups. Cluster 1 (n=85) included patients reporting significantly higher scores on all dispositional variables (experiential avoidance, anxiety sensitivity, worry, fear of pain, and perfectionism; allp<0.001) compared to patients in Cluster 2 (n=142). Patients in Cluster 1 also reported significantly greater mood impairment, pain anxiety sensitivity, and pain catastrophizing (allp<0.001). Clusters did not differ on quality of life or disability.Conclusions. The present study identifies a subgroup of rheumatoid arthritis patients who score significantly higher on dispositional affect and report increased mood impairment, pain anxiety sensitivity, and pain catastrophizing. Considering dispositional affect within subgroups of patients with RA may help health professionals tailor interventions for the specific stressors that these patients experience.

scholarly journals The Relationship between Pain Catastrophizing and Headache-Related Disability: The Mediating Role of Pain Intensity

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 266-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fereshte Sadat Mortazavi Nasiri ◽  
Shahla Pakdaman ◽  
Mohsen Dehghani ◽  
Mansoureh Togha
Keyword(s):  
Pain Intensity ◽  
Pain Catastrophizing ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
The Relationship
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