Psychological therapies for the management of chronic neuropathic pain in adults

Integrative Medicine for the Treatment of Persistent Pain

Integrative health modalities can provide useful tools in the management of persistent pain in the primary care setting. These modalities, such as acupuncture, mind-body medicine, diet and herbs, and movement strategies can be safely used and may provide patients with hope and empowerment. It is highly recommended that the patient work alongside trained professionals for a given modality and/or an interprofessional team.

The role of avoidance behavior in the treatment of adolescents with irritable bowel syndrome: A mediation analysis

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is common in adolescents with a pronounced negative impact on quality of life. A pattern of avoidance behavior is commonly seen in the IBS population, which is associated with more gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms. Exposure-based cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) targets the avoidance behavior to reduce symptoms, but it is unknown whether reduced avoidance is a mediator of symptom improvement in adolescent IBS. Stress has been suggested to play a key role in worsening GI symptoms and is also a potential mediator of the treatment effect in IBS. This study was based on data from a randomized controlled trial (N = 101) that evaluated exposure-based internet-delivered CBT (Internet-CBT) compared with a wait-list for adolescents with IBS. We investigated whether avoidance behavior and perceived stress mediated the improvement in global GI symptoms due to treatment. We found that a change in avoidance behavior, but not perceived stress, mediated the effect of exposure-based Internet-CBT on GI symptoms. The decrease in avoidance behavior explained a large portion (67%) of the total treatment effect. Moreover, a unidirectional relationship over time was observed between avoidance behavior and GI symptoms. Our conclusion is that exposure-based CBT in adolescent IBS reduces avoidance and, consequently, reduces GI symptoms.

Effect on Health Care Costs for Adolescents Receiving Adjunctive Internet-Delivered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial

The economic burden of pediatric chronic pain is high, with an estimated annual cost of $19.5 billion. Little is known about whether psychological treatment for pediatric chronic pain can alter health care utilization for youth. The primary aim of this secondary data analysis was to evaluate the effect of adjunctive internet cognitive-behavioral therapy intervention or adjunctive internet education on health care-related economic costs in a cohort of adolescents with chronic pain recruited from interdisciplinary pain clinics across the United States. For the full sample, health care expenditures significantly decreased from the year before the intervention to the year after the intervention. Results indicated that the rate of change in health care costs over time was not significantly different between the internet cognitive-behavioral therapy intervention and adjunctive internet education groups. Further research is needed to replicate these findings and determine patterns and drivers of health care costs for youth with chronic pain evaluated in interdisciplinary pain clinics and whether psychological treatments can alter these patterns. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov (identifier NCT01316471).

PERSPECTIVE

Health care expenditures significantly decreased in youth with chronic pain from the year before initiating treatment to the following year in both intervention conditions, adjunctive internet cognitive-behavioral therapy and adjunctive internet education. Contrary to our hypothesis, the rate of change in health care costs over time was not significantly different between intervention conditions.

Randomized Controlled Trial of Online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Fibromyalgia

In this study, 67 participants (95% female) with fibromyalgia (FM) were randomly assigned to an online acceptance and commitment therapy (online ACT) and treatment as usual (TAU; ACT + TAU) protocol or a TAU control condition. Online ACT + TAU participants were asked to complete 7 modules over an 8-week period. Assessments were completed at pre-treatment, post-treatment, and 3-month follow-up periods and included measures of FM impact (primary outcome), depression, pain, sleep, 6-minute walk, sit to stand, pain acceptance (primary process variable), mindfulness, cognitive fusion, valued living, kinesiophobia, and pain catastrophizing. The results indicated that online ACT + TAU participants significantly improved in FM impact, relative to TAU (P <.001), with large between condition effect sizes at post-treatment (1.26) and follow-up (1.59). Increases in pain acceptance significantly mediated these improvements (P = .005). Significant improvements in favor of online ACT + TAU were also found on measures of depression (P = .02), pain (P = .01), and kinesiophobia (P = .001). Although preliminary, this study highlights the potential for online ACT to be an efficacious, accessible, and cost-effective treatment for people with FM and other chronic pain conditions.

PERSPECTIVE

Online ACT reduced FM impact relative to a TAU control condition in this randomized controlled trial. Reductions in FM impact were mediated by improvements in pain acceptance. Online ACT appears to be a promising intervention for FM.

Assessing and treating primary headaches and cranio-facial pain in patients undergoing rehabilitation for neurological diseases

BACKGROUND

Pain is a very common condition in patient undergoing rehabilitation for neurological disease; however the presence of primary headaches and other cranio-facial pains, particularly when they are actually or apparently independent from the disability for which patient is undergoing rehabilitation, is often neglected. Diagnostic and therapeutic international and national guidelines, as well as tools for the subjective measure of head pain are available and should also be applied in the neurorehabilitation setting. This calls for searching the presence of head pain, independently from the rehabilitation needs, since pain, either episodic or chronic, interferes with patient performance by affecting physical and emotional status. Pain may also interfere with sleep and therefore hamper recovery.

METHODS

In our role of task force of the Italian Consensus Conference on Pain in Neurorehabilitation (ICCPN), we have elaborated specific recommendations for diagnosing and treating head pains in patients undergoing rehabilitation for neurological diseases.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

In this narrative review, we describe the available literature that has been evaluated in order to define the recommendations and outline the needs of epidemiological studies concerning headache and other cranio-facial pain in neurorehabilitation.

Psychological Interventions for Children with Functional Somatic Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the effectiveness of psychological treatments on symptom load and associated disability in children with functional somatic symptoms, and to explore potential moderators of effects.

STUDY DESIGN

Cochrane, PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, and CINAHL were searched for randomized controlled trials published in peer-reviewed journals. Randomized controlled trials studying the effect of a psychological treatment on symptom load and disability in children with functional somatic symptoms were selected. Data on symptom load, disability, and school absence directly post-treatment and at follow-up were extracted by 2 assessors. Studies were appraised with the Cochrane risk of bias tool. Standardized mean differences were pooled in a random-effects model. Heterogeneity in effect-sizes was explored by use of meta-regressions. PROSPERO Registration ID: CRD42015029667.

RESULTS

Out of 4098 identified records, 27 studies were included in this review of which 21 were included in meta-analyses. Psychological treatments reduced symptom load (Hedges g = -0.61), disability (Hedges g = -0.42), and school absence (Hedges g = -0.51) post-treatment in children suffering from various functional somatic symptoms. Effects were maintained at follow-up. Type and duration of symptoms, age, and treatment dose did not explain heterogeneity in effect-sizes between studies. Effect-sizes should be interpreted with caution because of the variety in outcome measures, unexplained heterogeneity in found effects and potential publication bias.

CONCLUSIONS

Psychological interventions reduce symptom load, disability, and school absence in children with functional somatic symptoms. Future research should clarify which patient and treatment characteristics modify outcomes.

Physical activity and exercise for chronic pain in adults: an overview of Cochrane Reviews

BACKGROUND

Chronic pain is defined as pain lasting beyond normal tissue healing time, generally taken to be 12 weeks. It contributes to disability, anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances, poor quality of life, and healthcare costs. Chronic pain has a weighted mean prevalence in adults of 20%.For many years, the treatment choice for chronic pain included recommendations for rest and inactivity. However, exercise may have specific benefits in reducing the severity of chronic pain, as well as more general benefits associated with improved overall physical and mental health, and physical functioning.Physical activity and exercise programmes are increasingly being promoted and offered in various healthcare systems, and for a variety of chronic pain conditions. It is therefore important at this stage to establish the efficacy and safety of these programmes, and furthermore to address the critical factors that determine their success or failure.

OBJECTIVES

To provide an overview of Cochrane Reviews of adults with chronic pain to determine (1) the effectiveness of different physical activity and exercise interventions in reducing pain severity and its impact on function, quality of life, and healthcare use; and (2) the evidence for any adverse effects or harm associated with physical activity and exercise interventions.

METHODS

We searched theCochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR) on the Cochrane Library (CDSR 2016, Issue 1) for systematic reviews of randomised controlled trials (RCTs), after which we tracked any included reviews for updates, and tracked protocols in case of full review publication until an arbitrary cut-off date of 21 March 2016 (CDSR 2016, Issue 3). We assessed the methodological quality of the reviews using the AMSTAR tool, and also planned to analyse data for each painful condition based on quality of the evidence.We extracted data for (1) self-reported pain severity, (2) physical function (objectively or subjectively measured), (3) psychological function, (4) quality of life, (5) adherence to the prescribed intervention, (6) healthcare use/attendance, (7) adverse events, and (8) death.Due to the limited data available, we were unable to directly compare and analyse interventions, and have instead reported the evidence qualitatively.

MAIN RESULTS

We included 21 reviews with 381 included studies and 37,143 participants. Of these, 264 studies (19,642 participants) examined exercise versus no exercise/minimal intervention in adults with chronic pain and were used in the qualitative analysis.Pain conditions included rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, low back pain, intermittent claudication, dysmenorrhoea, mechanical neck disorder, spinal cord injury, postpolio syndrome, and patellofemoral pain. None of the reviews assessed 'chronic pain' or 'chronic widespread pain' as a general term or specific condition. Interventions included aerobic, strength, flexibility, range of motion, and core or balance training programmes, as well as yoga, Pilates, and tai chi.Reviews were well performed and reported (based on AMSTAR), and included studies had acceptable risk of bias (with inadequate reporting of attrition and reporting biases). However the quality of evidence was low due to participant numbers (most included studies had fewer than 50 participants in total), length of intervention and follow-up (rarely assessed beyond three to six months). We pooled the results from relevant reviews where appropriate, though results should be interpreted with caution due to the low quality evidence. Pain severity: several reviews noted favourable results from exercise: only three reviews that reported pain severity found no statistically significant changes in usual or mean pain from any intervention. However, results were inconsistent across interventions and follow-up, as exercise did not consistently bring about a change (positive or negative) in self-reported pain scores at any single point. Physical function: was the most commonly reported outcome measure. Physical function was significantly improved as a result of the intervention in 14 reviews, though even these statistically significant results had only small-to-moderate effect sizes (only one review reported large effect sizes). Psychological function and quality of life: had variable results: results were either favourable to exercise (generally small and moderate effect size, with two reviews reporting significant, large effect sizes for quality of life), or showed no difference between groups. There were no negative effects. Adherence to the prescribed intervention: could not be assessed in any review. However, risk of withdrawal/dropout was slightly higher in the exercising group (82.8/1000 participants versus 81/1000 participants), though the group difference was non-significant. Healthcare use/attendance: was not reported in any review. Adverse events, potential harm, and death: only 25% of included studies (across 18 reviews) actively reported adverse events. Based on the available evidence, most adverse events were increased soreness or muscle pain, which reportedly subsided after a few weeks of the intervention. Only one review reported death separately to other adverse events: the intervention was protective against death (based on the available evidence), though did not reach statistical significance.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

The quality of the evidence examining physical activity and exercise for chronic pain is low. This is largely due to small sample sizes and potentially underpowered studies. A number of studies had adequately long interventions, but planned follow-up was limited to less than one year in all but six reviews.There were some favourable effects in reduction in pain severity and improved physical function, though these were mostly of small-to-moderate effect, and were not consistent across the reviews. There were variable effects for psychological function and quality of life.The available evidence suggests physical activity and exercise is an intervention with few adverse events that may improve pain severity and physical function, and consequent quality of life. However, further research is required and should focus on increasing participant numbers, including participants with a broader spectrum of pain severity, and lengthening both the intervention itself, and the follow-up period.

Psychological Approaches to Coping with Pain in Later Life

A psychological model of coping with the demands of aging is outlined. Chronic pain is conceptualized as a challenge to normal aging, because it threatens identity, risks affective disorder (depression), and interferes with action. The sparse evidence for psychological interventions is reviewed, and a case is made for the types of interventions that should be developed to address the specific presentation of geriatric pain management.

Headache symptoms consistent with migraine and tension-type headaches in children with anxiety disorders

OBJECTIVE

To examine the incidence of headache symptoms consistent with migraine and tension-type headache (TTH) in children with anxiety disorders.

METHOD

Parents of children with anxiety disorders (n=27) and children without anxiety disorders (n=36) completed a headache questionnaire based on the International Classification of Headache Disorders (2nd edition) criteria.

RESULTS

Children with anxiety disorders had a higher incidence of headache symptoms consistent with migraine and TTH compared to children without anxiety disorders. Girls with anxiety disorders and children with separation anxiety disorder had a higher incidence of headaches compared to girls without anxiety disorders and children with other anxiety disorders respectively. Children with anxiety disorders and headaches had higher self-reported anxiety symptom severity compared to children with anxiety disorders without headaches and children without anxiety disorders.

CONCLUSION

Findings highlight an overlap in anxiety and headaches in children and warrant further research on factors that contribute to the etiology and maintenance of these co-occurring problems.

Internet interventions for chronic pain including headache: A systematic review

Chronic pain is a major health problem and behavioral based treatments have been shown to be effective. However, the availability of these kinds of treatments is scarce and internet-based treatments have been shown to be promising in this area. The objective of the present systematic review is to evaluate internet-based interventions for persons with chronic pain. The specific aims are to do an updated review with a broad inclusion of different chronic pain diagnoses and to assess disability and pain and also measures of catastrophizing, depression and anxiety. A systematic search identified 891 studies and 22 trials were selected as eligible for review. Two of the selected trials included children/youth and five included individuals with chronic headache and/or migraine. The most frequently measured domain reflected in the primary outcomes was interference/disability, followed by catastrophizing. Result across the studies showed a number of beneficial effects. Twelve trials reported significant effects on disability/interference outcomes and pain intensity. Positive effects were also found on psychological variable such as catastrophizing, depression and anxiety. Several studies (n = 12) were assessed to have an unclear level of risk bias. The attrition levels ranged from 4% to 54% where the headache trials had the highest drop-out levels. However, findings suggest that internet-based treatments based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are efficacious measured with different outcome variables. Results are in line with trials in clinical settings. Meta-analytic statistics were calculated for interference/disability, pain intensity, catastrophizing and mood ratings. Results showed that the effect size for interference/disability was Hedge's g = - 0.39, for pain intensity Hedge's g = - 0.33, for catastrophizing Hedge's g = - 0.49 and for mood variables (depression) Hedge's g = - 0.26.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: How Medical Providers Can Increase Patient and Family Openness and Access to Evidence-Based Multimodal Therapy for Pediatric Migraine

Although evidence supports the recommendation for cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for pediatric migraine, few children actually receive this evidence-based intervention. In this article, we briefly review the most recent empirical evidence supporting CBT. We then identify both provider- and system-related barriers as well as patient-related barriers. Finally, we provide practical solutions to addressing these barriers in the service of facilitating children receiving optimal comprehensive management of their headaches.

Psychological therapies (remotely delivered) for the management of chronic and recurrent pain in children and adolescents

This is the protocol for a review and there is no abstract. The objectives are as follows: To determine the effectiveness of psychological therapies delivered remotely compared to waiting-list, treatment-as-usual, or active control for the management of chronic pain in children and adolescents.