Pain
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Communicative dimensions of pain catastrophizing: social cueing effects on pain behaviour and coping.
The study was designed to assess whether the social context of a pain experience impacted on the relation between catastrophizing and duration of pain behaviour. Based on a communal coping model, the prediction was that the presence of an observer during a pain procedure would differentially influence the display of pain behaviour in high and low catastrophizers. University undergraduates taking part in a cold pressor procedure were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: (1) participant alone (n=30), or (2) observer present (n=34). ⋯ When the observer was present, high catastrophizers also reported using fewer cognitive coping strategies than low catastrophizers. The pattern of findings suggests that in the presence of an observer, high pain catastrophizers show a propensity to engage in strategies that more effectively communicate their pain, and are less likely to engage in strategies that might minimize pain. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.
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Comparative Study
Effects of stimulus duration on heat induced pain: the relationship between real-time and post-stimulus pain ratings.
Pain is a temporally dynamic experience. Yet, in most instances, pain ratings are acquired in a static fashion and frequently require subjects to retrospectively evaluate the pain experience that occurred in a preceding interval of time. In order to determine which components of the real-time experience of pain contribute to static pain ratings, we obtained real-time (dynamic) and post-stimulus (static) ratings using a visual analogue scale during various of durations (5-30 s) of noxious thermal stimulation (43-49 degrees C). ⋯ Regression analyses examining both pain-intensity and pain-unpleasantness revealed that the mean response and the peak response of real-time ratings significantly contributed to post-stimulus ratings, while temporal components such as perceived duration of pain contributed minimally. Additional regression analyses revealed that mean and peak responses of real-time intensity ratings accounted for much of the variability of post-stimulus unpleasantness ratings whereas real-time unpleasantness ratings accounted for somewhat less of the variability of post-stimulus intensity ratings. Taken together, the close relationship between real-time and post-stimulus ratings of pain across stimulus conditions evoking both adaptation and temporal summation further confirms that post-stimulus, retrospective ratings of pain are valid measures of the real-time experience of pain.
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Comparative Study
The role of neuroticism, pain catastrophizing and pain-related fear in vigilance to pain: a structural equations approach.
The present study aimed at clarifying the precise role of pain catastrophizing, pain-related fear and personality dimensions in vigilance to pain and pain severity by means of structural equation modelling. A questionnaire survey was conducted in 122 patients with chronic or recurrent low back pain. Results revealed that pain catastrophizing and pain-related fear mediated the relationship between neuroticism and vigilance to pain. ⋯ Finally, we found that neuroticism moderated the relationship between pain severity and catastrophic thinking about pain. The results strongly support the idea that vigilance to pain is dependent upon catastrophic thinking and pain-related fear. Neuroticism is best conceived of as a vulnerability factor; it lowers the threshold at which pain is perceived as threatening, and at which catastrophic thoughts about pain emerge.
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Cannabinoid receptor agonists produce analgesia for pains of non-cranial origin. However, their effectiveness for craniofacial pains is currently unclear. In the present study, the cannabinoid CB1/CB2 receptor agonist, WIN 55,212-2 (WIN), was bath applied to the brainstem while activity of spinal trigeminal nucleus caudalis (Vc) neurons evoked by transcutaneous electrical stimulation was recorded in isoflurane anesthetized rats. ⋯ SR141716A, a CB1 receptor antagonist, prevented the effects of WIN on WDR PDC and LTM Abeta evoked activity. These results indicate that cannabinoid receptor agonists may be effective agents for craniofacial pain. Furthermore, the particular sensitivity of PDC activity, a measure of neuronal hyperexcitability, to cannabinoid receptor agonists may be relevant to the treatment of persistent craniofacial pain.