• Ariel M Baria, Sanjog Pangarkar, Gary Abrams, and Christine Miaskowski.
• Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare, Los Angeles, California.
• Pain Med. 2019 Jan 1; 20 (1): 14-27.

PopulationVeterans with chronic noncancer pain (CNCP) are a vulnerable population whose care remains a challenge for clinicians, policy-makers, and researchers. As a result of military experience, veterans are exposed to high rates of musculoskeletal injuries, trauma, psychological stressors (e.g., post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, substance abuse), and social factors (e.g., homelessness, social isolation, disability, decreased access to medical care) that contribute to the magnitude and impact of CNCP. In the veteran population, sound theoretical models are needed to understand the specific physiological, psychological, and social factors that influence this unique experience.ObjectiveThis paper describes an adaption of Gatchel and colleagues' biopsychosocial model of CNCP to veterans and summarizes research findings that support each component of the revised model. The paper concludes with a discussion of important implications for the use of this revised model in clinical practice and future directions for research.ConclusionsThe adaption of the biopsychosocial model of CNCP for veterans provides a useful and relevant conceptual framework that can be used to guide future research and improve clinical care in this vulnerable population.

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