Answered Questions is a monthly resource for the Spanish language Disability Community that fills an information need. This month’s question is: I was recently diagnosed with a health condition that includes chronic pain and I would like to learn more about it. What research, resources, and information are available related to chronic pain? This edition of Answered Questions includes items that discuss research on chronic pain after a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI); posttraumatic stress disorder symptom clusters as predictors of pain interference in burn survivors; electrical stimulation and nerve pain for people with spinal cord injury (SCI); therapeutic exercise as treatment of chronic pain; and more. More about Answered Questions.
NIDILRR-Funded Projects:
The project, Characterization and Treatment of Chronic Pain After Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) (in English), researches and evaluates the treatment needs of people with TBI who are living with chronic pain. The study results from this project provided a more detailed picture of the issues surrounding chronic pain after TBI and identified treatment targets to advance a personalized medical approach for treatment.
From the NARIC Collection:
The NIDILRR-funded article, Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters of pain interference in burn survivors: A Burn Model System National Database study (in English), discusses a study that evaluated the relationship between PTSD symptom clusters and pain interference in people with burn injuries. The results of this study highlight the importance of emotional numbing and hyperarousal PTSD symptom clusters in explaining pain interference. The findings suggest that when PTSD symptoms or chronic pain are present, screening for and treating either condition may be needed to reduce pain interference.
Research In Focus:
The article, Electrical Stimulation May Help Reduce Nerve Pain for People with Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), discusses a NIDILRR-funded study that looked at the impact of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) treatment on nerve pain in people with SCI over time. The researchers found that the participants in the experimental and comparison groups reported similar pain levels right after the treatment and two weeks after. However, the experimental group reported lower average pain levels than the comparison group at 4 and 8 weeks after the treatment. Researchers suggest that future research may be useful in testing treatment regimens that combine tDCS with traditional medications for relieving nerve pain for people with SCI.
Rehabilitation:
The article, Therapeutic exercise as treatment for spinal chronic pain: Systematic review of randomized clinical trials, discusses a study that evaluated the effectiveness of different types of therapeutic exercise in treating patients with chronic spinal pain. Researchers found that the different types of therapeutic exercise had significant effects on pain reduction, decrease of disability, and improvement in quality of life. Overall, the results indicate that no single modality of therapeutic exercise is superior for chronic spinal pain. The authors suggested that more high-quality research is needed that compares various types of therapeutic exercise and that a combination of therapeutic exercise modalities may offer a more complete tool for management of chronic pain.
Treatment:
The article, Group intervention from a sensorimotor approach to reduce the intensity of chronic pain, discusses a randomized control trial that assessed the effectiveness of Time In, an intervention designed to reduce pain and to improve psychological symptoms in people with chronic pain. Researchers observed improvements the intervention group in pain measures, quality of life, and behavioral change compared to the control group. The results of the study indicate that the Time In intervention reduced pain and improved psychological symptoms in patients with fibromyalgia and resulted in a better quality of life.
Resources:
- Do you want to learn more about chronic pain? Chronic pain, an article on Medline Plus, defines chronic pain and shares links to information on treatments and therapies, living with chronic pain, pain and emotions, and research, among other topics.
- The NIDILRR-funded Model System Knowledge Translation Center (MSKTC) provides factsheets in Spanish related to pain for people with SCI, TBI, and burn injuries.
- NARIC’s information and community resources specialists have carefully selected resources on pain management. We use these resources every day to connect patrons to support in their community. This resource is available in English.
Pain Awareness Month:
- The American Chronic Pain Association (ACPA) (in English) established the first Pain Awareness Month in 2001 to help raise awareness of the issues surrounding information on chronic pain and access to treatment. The ACPA facilitates peer support, education, and motivation for individuals living with pain and those treating pain conditions. The ACPA shares opportunities to participate in research, shares resources that people with chronic pain and pain professionals can use daily, and shares information on local support groups.
Further Research:
REHABDATA:
- Chronic pain (NIDILRR-funded documents only).
- Chronic pain (all documents).
- Pain.
PubMed:
International:
Each month, we look through the searches on our blog and through the information requests made by our patrons who speak Spanish and pick a topic that fills the largest need. Each resource mentioned above is associated with this month’s information need. We search the various Spanish language news sources and feeds throughout the month to bring you these articles. With the exception of the NIDILRR Projects, From the NARIC Collection, and Further Investigation, all the linked articles and resources are in Spanish – any that are in English will be clearly marked.
