Dispositional and situational personal features and acute post-collision head and neck pain: Double mediation of pain catastrophizing and pain sensitivity

Quantitative sensory testing, psychological factors, and quality of life as predictors of current and future pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis

ABSTRACT

Substantial interindividual variability characterizes osteoarthritis (OA) pain. Previous findings identify quantitative sensory testing (QST), psychological factors, and health-related quality of life as contributors to OA pain and predictors of treatment outcomes. This exploratory study aimed to explain baseline OA pain intensity and predict OA pain after administration of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug in combination with paracetamol for 3 weeks. The Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) pain score was used to estimate OA pain presentation. One hundred one patients were assessed at baseline and follow-up using QST (pressure pain thresholds and temporal summation of pain [TSP]), symptoms of depression and anxiety, pain catastrophizing scales (PCSs), and health-related quality of life. Linear regression with backward selection identified that PCS significantly explained 34.2% of the variability in baseline KOOS pain, with nonsignificant contributions from TSP. Pain catastrophizing score and TSP predicted 29.3% of follow-up KOOS pain, with nonsignificant contributions from symptoms of anxiety. When assessed separately, PCS was the strongest predictor (32.2% of baseline and 24.1% of follow-up pain), but QST, symptoms of anxiety and depression, PCS, and quality of life also explained some variability in baseline and follow-up knee OA pain. Further analyses revealed that only TSP and PCS were not mediated by any other included variables, highlighting their role as unique contributors to OA pain presentation. This study emphasizes the importance of embracing a multimodal approach to OA pain and highlights PCS and TSP as major contributors to the baseline OA pain experience and the OA pain experience after OA treatment.

The Value of Pain Sensitivity Questionnaire in Predicting Postoperative Pain in Living Kidney Donors: A Prospective Observational Study

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate the value of the Pain Sensitivity Questionnaire (PSQ) for the prediction of postoperative pain and the relationship between pain sensitivity and postoperative pain in kidney donors undergoing living-related kidney transplantation.

Patients and Methods

A total of 148 kidney donors were selected and the preoperative pain sensitivity questionnaire was administered the day before surgery. Kidney donors were assigned to low PSQ group (PSQ < 6.5, n = 76) or high PSQ group (PSQ ≥ 6.5, n = 72). The primary endpoint was the number of patient-controlled analgesia (PCA). Other outcomes included: the incidence of acute pain, flurbiprofen axetil remediation rate, the incidence of chronic pain, neuropathic pain assessment scale (Douleur Neuropathique 4 Questions, DN4), visual analog scale (VAS) at rest after surgery as well as the correlation between PSQ and QST (Quantitative Sensory Testing).

Results

The low PSQ group had a significantly lower number of PCA than high PSQ group (P < 0.0001). The incidence of acute pain was 75% in low PSQ group and 100% in high PSQ group (P < 0.0001). Furthermore, flurbiprofen axetil remediation rate was lower in low PSQ group than that in high PSQ group (P = 0.042). The incidence of chronic pain was significantly lower in low PSQ group than in high PSQ group (6.6% vs 61.1%, P < 0.001). Moreover, DN4 was significantly lower in low PSQ group than that in high PSQ group (P < 0.001). The PSQ-mean was significantly negatively correlated with QST in kidney donors. VAS at rest for the low PSQ group were lower than those of the high PSQ group.

Conclusion

The PSQ was found to be associated with the intensity or postoperative pain and might be used to screen patients prior to living-kidney transplantation.

Factors related to positive attitudes toward palliative care: Direct and indirect effects of self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, and beliefs

CONTEXT

Knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes toward palliative care (PC) constitute barriers to its access. Few studies have focused on the intrinsic relationship between these variables, and none has examined the relationship between them and self-care self-efficacy.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the direct and indirect effects of self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, and beliefs on attitudes toward PC.

METHODS

A cross-sectional predictive study was conducted. Self-care self-efficacy, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about PC were analyzed using information from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5, cycle 2, 2018). Data from 1,162 participants were considered. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to represent the statistical mediation model with latent and observable variables.

RESULTS

The structural model presents positive coefficients indicating that self-care self-efficacy significantly predicts knowledge (β = 0.127, p < 0.001) and beliefs (β = 0.078, p = 0.023). Similarly, knowledge is associated with attitudes (β = 0.179, p < 0.001) and beliefs (β = 0.213, p < 0.001). The beliefs measure is also significantly related to attitudes (β = 0.474, p < 0.001). In addition, this structural multiple mediation model shows optimal goodness-of-fit indices: χ2/df = 3.49, CFI = 0.983, TLI = 0.976, RMSEA = 0.046 [90% CI: 0.037-0.056], SRMR = 0.038.

CONCLUSION

Self-care self-efficacy is significantly associated with knowledge and beliefs about PC, which in turn are related to each other. Altogether, these variables predict positive attitudes toward PC. Understanding the relationship between these variables is relevant for targeting-specific populations and designing timely strategies to improve access to PC.