The Clinical journal of pain
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Meta Analysis
Traumatic Life Experience and Pain Sensitization: Meta-analysis of Laboratory Findings.
Psychological trauma often co-occurs with pain. This relationship has been explored using laboratory pain measures; however, findings have been mixed. Previous studies have limited operationalization of trauma (eg, posttraumatic stress disorder) or pain (eg, pain thresholds), which may contribute to conflicting results. Further, prior reviews likely underrepresent trauma experiences among people who are not receiving clinical care, limiting generalizability. ⋯ Findings demonstrate an overall pattern of trauma-related pain enhancement and point to central sensitization as a key underlying mechanism.
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Meta Analysis
Are Ecological Momentary Assessments of Pain Valid and Reliable? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the level of evidence for the psychometric properties of Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) in populations with persistent pain. ⋯ Ecological momentary assessment of pain experience appears both valid and reliable. Although the levels of evidence were low or very low, these findings provide preliminary support for the use of EMA in clinical practice and research settings. Potential strengths of EMA include providing measures with greater ecological validity while also reducing recall bias, both pertinent in pain outcome measurement. More research, including higher-quality studies, is needed to demonstrate further support for EMA, including the need for establishing other types of validity.
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Pediatric chronic pain represents heterogeneous diagnoses; often, primary pain location informs research classifications and treatment. In contrast, recent research has highlighted the role of widespread pain and this perspective has been adopted in assessments in specialty pediatric pain clinics. The lack of direct comparison between these 2 methods of categorizing pediatric chronic pain may hinder the adoption of evidence-based practices across the spectrum of care. Therefore, this study aimed to compare whether primary pain location or pain widespreadedness is more informative for pain-related symptoms in pediatric chronic pain. ⋯ Pain widespreadedness was more consistently associated with pain-related outcomes among pediatric chronic pain patients than primary pain location, and body maps may be useful in determining a nociplastic pain mechanism to inform treatment. Improved assessment of pediatric pain mechanisms may help advance more precise treatment delivery.
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This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the association between changes in patients' pain knowledge after pain science education (PSE) with treatment outcomes in people with chronic pain. ⋯ These findings do not support a short-term association between improvements in pain neurophysiology knowledge and better treatment outcomes in people with chronic pain. Increased understanding of how PSE works, as well as better ways to measure it, may help clinicians deliver more targeted education to help patients reconceptualize pain and promote engagement in active treatment strategies (eg, exercise).