The Clinical journal of pain
-
We investigated the prevalence of a history of sexual abuse among patients with long-term musculoskeletal pain. Psychological factors associated with abuse and pain were also studied. ⋯ These data extend the relationship between sexual abuse and pain to a Swedish population suffering from musculoskeletal complaints. Our findings suggest that intervention in the pain treatment setting may need to address further the problems of effective coping strategies and depression.
-
A cross-sectional study on patients with chronic low back pain to compare relationships between subjective disability and pain intensity, pain duration, pain location, and work-related factors. ⋯ The results suggest that subjective disability in patients with chronic low back pain overlaps with both pain and work-related factors. The observations support the multidimensionality of low back disability.
-
To look for anatomical and histochemical signs of interaction between sensory and sympathetic nerves in the hyperalgesic skin of patients with complex regional pain syndrome. ⋯ A major difference in distribution or change in histochemical content of cutaneous autonomic or nociceptor fibers is unlikely to underly static mechanical hyperalgesia following a soft-tissue or peripheral nerve injury. The relevance of cutaneous nerve tangles for the pathophysiology of RSD is uncertain.
-
Previous reviewers of the literature on transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) outcome have concluded the following: (a) there are few long-term TENS follow-up studies, and (b) fewer studies have addressed the effect of long-term TENS use on outcome variables other than pain (e.g., function). DESIGN/SETTING/PARTICIPANTS/OUTCOME MEASURES: From a population of 2,003 chronic pain patients (CPPs) who bought a TENS device for pain management, 506 patients were randomly selected and interviewed by telephone long enough after purchase to allow at least 6 months of TENS use. The interview process used a structured "skip" questionnaire designed to assess the CPPs' perceptions regarding the effectiveness of TENS for a variety of outcome variables. Of the 506 CPPs interviewed, 376 (74.3%) had used their TENS device for 6 months or longer and were defined as long-term users. The responses of this group of CPPs to the telephone questionnaire were then subjected to statistical analysis. ⋯ The results suggest that TENS is associated with improvement on multiple outcome variables in addition to pain relief for CPPs who are long-term users. Also, for some CPPs, long-term TENS use continues to be effective.