The Clinical journal of pain
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Cognitive testing and revision of the pain quality assessment scale.
To revise the Pain Quality Assessment Scale (PQAS) using feedback from patients to further increase its validity. ⋯ testing can be used to improve the understandability of pain measures. The results of cognitive testing with the PQAS indicated that much of the content of the original instructions and items were understandable as written, but that minor changes could be made to make them even clearer to patients with chronic pain. The changes made resulted in a revised PQAS that is more understandable and may therefore be even more useful than with the original PQAS.
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This study examined the effects of exercise-induced muscle damage (EIMD) on the physiological and perceptual responses to 30 minutes of submaximal cycling at 60% of oxygen consumption (VO2 peak). ⋯ These findings indicate the elevations in RPE after EIMD are likely a consequence of the EIMD with the most likely explanation being an increase in localized pain before and during cycling exercise.
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To test whether the prognostic definition of chronic pain, which has previously been applied in specific anatomic areas, performed well in a cohort of older adults with a range of musculoskeletal pain sites. ⋯ The prognostic approach to defining chronic pain is suitable for use in older adults consulting primary care with musculoskeletal pain at a range of sites, but new cutoffs are needed to allow for the higher risk profile in this group. An adapted version of this method may also have the potential for application directly within the clinical consultation.
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The underlying mechanism of trichodynia (scalp/hair pain, is unknown). The aim of this study was to characterize chronic trichodynia and to conduct, for the first time, sensory testing in patients with trichodynia to learn about possible underlying mechanisms. ⋯ The cranial hyperalgesia and allodynia, the generalized hyperalgesia, and the correlation between hyperalgesia and chronic pain suggest that trichodynia is related with both peripheral and central sensitization, respectively. The coexistence of hair cycle abnormalities and chronic pain might suggest a common denominator for both phenomena, possibly mediated by proinflammatory agents. Clinical implications are discussed.