European Journal of Pain : EJP

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BACKGROUND: A core aspect of the clinical assessment of pain is establishing how long pain has been present for. The reported length of pain can therefore influence diagnosis and treatment. Despite this, little is known about how chronic pain affects the passage of time. METHODS: A mixed-methods cross-sectional study examined experiences of the passage of time in people identifying as living with chronic pain (n = 398). RESULTS: Experiencing chronic pain slows the passage of time for most people...

INTRODUCTION: The somatotopic organization of the human cerebellum processes somato-motoric input. Its role during pain perception for nociceptive input remains ambiguous. A standardized experimental trigeminal nociceptive input in functional imaging might clarify the role of the cerebellum in trigeminal nociception. Also of interest is the greater occipital nerve, which innervates the back of the head, and can influence the trigeminal perception due to functional coupling within the brainstem, forming the so-called trigemino-cervical complex...

BACKGROUND: The aims of this bibliometric analysis were (1) a longitudinal analysis of the publication landscape in the field of pain (1975-2020) and (2) to characterize the overall publication profiles for two selected journals: European Journal of Pain and PAIN® utilizing an automated approach. METHODS: Database searches in Scopus extracted all journals with 'pain' in their title. For the two specific journals, papers were manually/automatically profiled into preclinical, human and translational studies...

BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) is a major public health issue that influences physical and emotional factors integral to the limbic system. This study aims to investigate the association between LBP and brain morphometry alterations as the duration of LBP increases (acute vs. chronic). METHODS: We used the UK Biobank data to investigate the morphological features of the limbic system in acute LBP (N = 115), chronic LBP (N = 243) and controls (N = 358), and tried to replicate our findings with an independent dataset composed of 45 acute LBP participants evaluated at different timepoints throughout 1 year from the OpenPain database...

BACKGROUND: Chronic back pain in employees compromises participation in social and daily activities, as well as work. OBJECTIVES: To examine the severity of back pain after 2 years and identify factors predicting stagnation at this level of pain. METHODS: Data were derived from a prospective cohort study with randomized sampling of insurants in the German Pension Insurance using a questionnaire at baseline and follow-up after 2 years...

BACKGROUND: Perceived diagnostic uncertainty can leave adolescents confused about their condition and impede their ability to understand "what's wrong with me". Our aim is to develop credible explanations about the condition for adolescents suffering from non-traumatic knee pain. METHODS: This multiple-method study integrated findings from two systematic literature searches of qualitative and quantitative studies, an Argumentative Delphi with international experts (n = 16) and think-aloud interviews with adolescents (n = 16)...

BACKGROUND: Social interactions with subjects experiencing pain can increase nociceptive sensitivity in observers, even without direct physical contact. In previous experiments, extended indirect exposure to soiled bedding from mice with alcohol withdrawal-related hyperalgesia enhanced nociception in their conspecifics. This finding suggested that olfactory cues could be sufficient for nociceptive hypersensitivity in otherwise untreated animals (also known as "bystanders"). AIM: The current study addressed this possibility using an inflammation-based hyperalgesia model and long- and short-term exposure paradigms in C57BL/6J mice...

BACKGROUND: Past research has established the important role of parent soothing in early childhood pain management. However, limited research has assessed children's own emerging emotion regulation strategies to reduce their pain during vaccination. The purpose of the current study was to understand the relative contributions of child-led emotion-regulation behaviours over and above parent regulatory behaviours and pre-needle distress. METHODS: Toddler-caregiver dyads were videotaped at their 12- and/or 18-month vaccinations...

BACKGROUND: People with chronic pain are frequently exposed to stigma, which is typically distressing and may lead to internal stigmatizing thoughts. The thought content associated with stigma has similarities to pain catastrophizing, although these concepts differ in that stigma is arguably more social in origin. Stigma can be measured by the Stigma Scale for Chronic Illness - 8-item version (SSCI-8). In this study, we first demonstrate the validity of this measure in Swedish. We then examine the role of stigma in the health and functioning of people with chronic pain, particularly beyond the role played by pain catastrophizing...

BACKGROUND: Microcirculatory pathology is one of the pathophysiological theories of migraine, which may present as visually subclinical lesions. Image markers of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) have been investigated in elderly migraineurs. However, past studies looked at only part of image features, and the conclusions may have been hindered by confounding factors. The relationship between migraine and CSVD signs needs reliable demonstrations. METHODS: We conducted a case-control study by recruiting episodic young migraineurs from a tertiary headache centre, with tension-type headache (TTH) and healthy controls...

BACKGROUND: The magnitude of placebo effects from physical and psychological 'sham' is unknown but could impact efficacy trials and treatment understanding. To quantify placebo effects, this systematic review of three-armed randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of physical and psychological interventions for pain compared outcomes in 'sham' control intervention and non-exposure arms. METHODS: RCTs with treatment, 'sham' control intervention, and non-exposure groups were included, enrolling adults with any pain...

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the effects of Cervical Stabilization Training (CST) on the headache, neck pain and cervical musculoskeletal system in patients with headache compared to the control group. METHODS: A total of 90 female patients with migraine, tension-type headache and cervicogenic headache (CGH) participated in this study. The patients were divided into the cervical stabilization training group (CSTG) and the control group (CG). The CSTG performed the CST three times a week for 8 weeks while the CG continued their ongoing medical treatment...

BACKGROUND: Chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) represents a significant issue for many patients following surgery; however, the long-term incidence and impact have not been well described following cardiac surgery. Our aim was to characterize CPSP at least 5 years following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. METHODS: This prospective observational study investigated a cohort of patients from a larger trial investigating cognitive outcomes following CABG surgery, with 89 of 148 eligible patients (60...

BACKGROUND: Placebo use is widespread in clinical practice. However, they are most often administered deceptively rather than openly. It is often suggested that open-label placebos (OLP) are less effective than deceptive placebos (DP). This study aimed to compare the use of DP and OLP treatments to reduce pain in healthy volunteers. METHODS: We conducted a non-inferiority, parallel, randomized, controlled trial, which also included a nested cross-over no-treatment condition...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a chronic musculoskeletal disorder characterized by the presence of trigger points. Among the treatment options, botulinum toxin injections have been investigated. The aim of this paper was to provide a synthesis of the evidence on intramuscular botulinum toxin injections for upper back MPS. DATABASES AND DATA TREATMENT: A systematic review of the literature was performed on the PubMed, Scopus and Cochrane Library, using the following formula: ("botulinum") AND ("musculoskeletal") AND ("upper back pain") OR ("myofascial pain")...

BACKGROUND: Opioid dose titration is a fundamental process of opioid therapy in cancer pain. AIMS: To assess data opioid dose titration. METHODS: The principal opioid dose titration methods, outcomes, and modalities of administration regarding the different opioid preparations were examined in different clinical contexts. RESULTS: Most studies suggested that opioid-naive patients should be started at doses of 15-30 mg/day of oral morphine equivalents...

BACKGROUND: There is inter-individual variability in the influence of different components (e.g. nociception and expectations) on pain perception. Identifying the individual effect of these components could serve for patient stratification, but only if these influences are stable in time. METHODS: In this study, 30 healthy participants underwent a cognitive pain paradigm in which they rated pain after viewing a probabilistic cue informing of forthcoming pain intensity and then receiving electrical stimulation...

BACKGROUND: Expert consensus asserts that early treatment of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) leads to better outcomes. Yet no evidence supports this assumption regarding the recognized gold standard of multidisciplinary functional rehabilitation. To address this, we aimed to establish if there is a difference in outcomes between early CRPS (<1 year symptom duration) and persistent CRPS (= >1 year symptom duration) following rehabilitation and whether any gains are maintained at three months...

BACKGROUND: Neck pain is common among individuals with migraine, but there is a lack of information of how this comorbidity can be associated with cervical muscle function. This controlled cross-sectional study aimed to compare cervical muscle function, activity, and sensitization in women with migraine, neck pain, both, and neither. METHODS: This study included women, between 18 and 55 years old, with either episodic migraine with or without aura, without any concomitant headache diagnosis; chronic neck pain, with at least moderate intensity and mild disability; or neither headache nor neck pain...