The Clinical journal of pain
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In a questionnaire survey we determined the prevalence and intensity of muscular symptoms in a group of chronic headache sufferers as compared with age- and sex-matched controls. The muscular symptoms studied were tightness and soreness of the neck, shoulder, and jaw muscles. Muscle tightness was reported significantly more frequently in the headache than in the control group, but only for the neck muscles (48.6 vs. 29.9%; p less than 0.01). ⋯ With regard to the prevalence of muscle soreness, there were no significant differences between the headache and the control groups or within the headache group when headache was absent or present. However, the intensity of muscle soreness was significantly greater for all three muscle groups in the headache group when headache was present than when headache was absent (p less than 0.001). The results indicate significant muscular symptoms in relation to headache, particularly in relation to the neck muscles, with tightness standing out more than soreness.
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The relationship between pain perception and emotional states is well known. However, the nature of this relationship and how different emotional states affect sensory and cognitive dimensions of pain remains uncertain. Results from experimental investigations are often contradictory, which may be due to methodological difficulties in inducing pain and monitoring physiological responses. ⋯ No differences could be detected for either the happy or the fear-related condition compared with the baseline or neutral hypnotic condition. A significant positive correlation between the subjective intensity of depression and the increase in evoked potentials was found, but none for the other three emotions. The results support earlier findings that clinical depression is related to increased pain perception, and findings that the expression of anger can inhibit the experience of pain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)