Pain Management Commons^™

Biopsychosocial Management Of Long Covid Fibromyalgia: Lessons From The Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health Fibromyalgia Program, Joseph Harrison, Dennis Given Psy.D.

The Journal of Integrated Primary Care

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the prevalence of chronic health concerns worldwide, leading to a new population of patients suffering from Long Covid. Patients with Long Covid often experience persistent symptoms impacting multiple organ systems, including neuroimmune and neurological manifestations. Recently, attention has grown toward Long Covid patients developing chronic widespread pain similar to fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is a nociplastic pain disorder characterized by widespread pain and central sensitization with fatigue, sleep disturbances, and impairments in cognitive functioning. Given the nascent and limited research exploring new treatment options, patients need support now from biopsychosocial multi-modal pain management strategies. The Fibromyalgia Program …

Development And Validation Of The Pain Resilience And Optimism Scale (Pros), Wonjin Seo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Numerous self-report questionnaires have been used in pain research to explore patients' experiences. However, these questionnaires often employ negatively worded items that can potentially worsen patients' distress. In response to the emergence of positive psychology, this thesis aimed to develop a new questionnaire that adopts a positive and strengths-focused approach, incorporating resilience, to replace the negative items found in existing tools such as the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS). First, the effectiveness of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) in measuring resilience following trauma was assessed through a systematic review using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INstruments …

Bridging Empathy, Qianwen Lu

Masters Theses

As a jeweler, ally, and sympathetic witness to the traumatic stories of survivors, my work aims to support the process of reconstruction and reintegration for victims and the greater community. To move beyond isolation, resentment, and debilitating helplessness requires care and support. I want my jewelry to act as catalysts in the healing process by straddling both sides of the trauma-induced situation, to create greater awareness and empathy. National Coalition Against Domestic Violence shows that women are more likely to become victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or other forms of physical and psychological abuse in unhealthy emotional relationships. These …

Examining The Use Of Expressive Arts Therapies In Neurorehabilitation Treatment Planning, Rebecca J. Horner

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Those undergoing neurorehabilitation after stroke and traumatic brain injury report a diminished sense of overall wellness. This paper examines the conceivable benefits of introducing expressive arts therapies, which is the therapeutic use and combination of the visual arts, movement, drama, music, writing and other intermodal creative processes, into physical therapy and neurorehabilitation treatment planning. Expressive arts therapies have the capacity to engage with an individual’s physical, emotional, social and spiritual states concurrently. They simultaneously offer the ability to promote an increased sense of well-being, address mind-body disconnects, and process trauma non-verbally.

The sections of this narrative literature review focus on …

The Effect Of A Gratitude Intervention On Acute Pain Toleration, Cynthia Ware

Honors College Theses

Gratitude interventions are emerging as a method to improve physical health outcomes; however, gratitude’s effect on pain perception and the autonomic response is understudied. Recent research suggests the perigenual anterior cingulate cortex is activated in gratitude interventions and is also involved in the perception of pain and the activation of the sympathetic nervous system. In this study, we investigated the effect of state gratitude induction on pain through the use of the cold pressor method. We found that although there were no significant differences in self-reported unpleasantness, participants in the gratitude condition reported a higher intensity of pain. Nevertheless, participants …

Pne - Lots Of Talk, Superficial Results, Aidan Keller, Michael Ray, Taylor Baugher

ASPIRE 2023

A narrative review (NR) of meta-analyses (MA) and systematic reviews (SR) that assess the effectiveness or efficacy of pain neuroscience education (PNE) on various outcome measures in individuals with chronic musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. Systematic searches were conducted on 4 databases. Study selection included MAs and SRs that assessed the effectiveness or efficacy of PNE on CP populations. Quantitative eligibility criteria included randomized controlled trials (RCTs), adults (18+ years of age), English or Spanish speaking individuals, and reporting of chronic pain (persistent or recurrent pain lasting ≥ 3 months). Qualitative eligibility criteria included individuals reporting chronic pain and experienced a PNE …

Mpacts Of Parental Incarceration On Child's Well-Being And Interventions To Support Them, Anna Stacey Roberge

Honors Theses and Capstones

This study reviews the effectiveness and impact of current interventions for children who have incarcerated parents in New Hampshire. The negative impacts of parental incarceration have led to the need for these intervention strategies. Recently psychologists and behavioral experts have conducted their studies which show that children who have incarcerated parents are more likely to display delinquent behaviors. Additionally, studies have shown that parental incarceration can lead to the experiencing of several more psychological difficulties, such as depression, anxiety, and learning disorders (Kremer et al., 2020). Several communities have worked to implement interventions that will help these children avoid falling …

Opioid Use Disorder In The Active Service: Incidence Rates And Behavioral Health Considerations, Brian A. Moore, Sophie Vincent, Michael Schlenk, Anne White

Symposium of Student Scholars

Military service members experience occupational specific injuries that often result in chronic pain, and comorbid behavioral health concerns that may be exacerbated by opioid use. Despite the vast amount of research examining substance use in the military, there is a dearth of literature examining the incidence of opioid use disorder (OUD). The present epidemiological study aims to examine the incident rate trends of OUD diagnoses among active duty service members between 2016 and 2021. The present study utilized data drawn from the Defense Medical Epidemiology Database (DMED) to conduct a retrospective cohort study and calculate the incidence rate of OUD …

Medical Norm Of Psychiatric Misdiagnoses In Rare Disease Patients, Rachel Han

Publications and Research

Spring 2022 ENG 120 Student Final Research Paper on the medical norm of psychiatric misdiagnosis throughout the diagnostic journeys of rare disease patients. The idea of a norm was taken from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Tedx Talk "The Danger of a Single Story". Paper discusses prevalence, harmful effects, and origin of this medical norm. Includes discussion of statistical data quoted relating to prevalence of rare diseases as well as anecdotal evidence of the severe ramifications of this norm. Discussion of how medically unexplained symptoms such as mysterious chronic pain often lead to the phenomenon of the psychogenic inference. Origins of this …

Pain Interference Across Chronic Pain Populations: Variability And Associated Psychosocial Processes, Stephanie Judge

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Chronic pain is one of the most common health complaints, yet the limited effectiveness of existing treatment options suggests that chronic pain is still not fully understood. The goals of this study are to identify and organize well-established and emerging psychosocial factors associated with pain interference, clarify the nature of between- and within-diagnostic group differences in psychosocial and demographic factors associated with pain interference, and identify interactions among diagnostic and psychosocial factors associated with pain interference.

Community-dwelling participants (N = 284) completed a one-time survey which included demographic information, information about pain and diagnosis, and five existing measures that assess …

Mindfulness To Manage Moral Injury: Rationale And Development Of A Live Online 7-Week Group Intervention For Veterans With Moral Injury, Michelle L. Kelley, Megan Strowger, Victoria O. Chentsova, Adrian J. Bravo, Susan A. Gaylord, Elizabeth E. Burgin, Christine Vinci, Kenneth L. Ayers, Erum Agha

Psychology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Military service puts service members at risk for moral injury. Moral injury is an array of symptoms (e.g., guilt, shame, anger) that develop from events that violate or transgress one's moral code.

OBJECTIVE: We describe adaption of in-person mindfulness training program, Mindfulness to Manage Chronic Pain (MMCP), to address symptoms of moral injury to be delivered live via the web. We discuss how we will assess benchmarks (i.e., recruitment, credibility and acceptability, completion rates, and adherence) of the Mindfulness to Manage Moral Injury (MMMI) program.

METHODS: Aim 1: To develop and then adapt the MMCP program based on …

The Subcomponents Of Affect Scale (Sas): Validating A Widely Used Affect Scale, Brooke N. Jenkins, Marie P. Cross, Candice Donaldson, Sarah D. Pressman, Michelle A. Fortier, Zeev N. Kain, Sheldon Cohen, Logan T. Martin, George Farkas

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective

There is a need for a brief affect scale that also encompasses different components of affect relevant for researchers interested in physiological and health outcomes. The Subcomponents of Affect Scale (SAS) meets this need. This 18-item scale has nine positive and nine negative affect items encompassing six subscales (calm, well-being, vigour, depression, anxiety, anger). Previous research using the SAS has demonstrated its predictive validity, but no work has tested its subscale structure or longitudinal validity.

Design

Data from the Common Cold Project in which individuals (N = 610) completed the SAS over the course of seven days were used. …

Attitudes Toward Mindfulness And Adherence In Chronic Pain Management, Sarah Johnson

Global Honors Theses

Chronic pain is a global public health problem, affecting 10-25% of the population. Mindfulness is an effective treatment but requires consistency. Because of its benefit, it is important to examine obstacles to mindfulness practice. In order to determine if negative attitudes toward mindfulness are related to non-adherence, 748 adults with chronic pain were recruited to fill out a series of questionnaires assessing treatment adherence and attitudes toward mindfulness. We found that positive attitudes toward mindfulness predicted reduced adherence. However, those who had more positive feelings toward mindfulness made more attempts at the therapy. Upper and middle-class participants had more positive …

Reiki For Recovery: Incorporating Japanese Health Practices To Increase Contemporary Resiliency In American Health, Leif Peterson

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Japanese health practice of Reiki attempts to maximize the latent ability of the human system to heal itself. The Reiki system, established over a century ago, combines multiple Asian health traditions, experimenting with practices that maximize the natural processes of the body to perform its own repairs. Reiki encourages healthy behaviors that balance the mind and body, return the human system to a lowered stress level, and allow for an optimal recovery state for the patient. This paper illustrates how this Japanese health-affirming method can be integrated and utilized within existing health and medical practices. An area that is …

The Use Of Mindfulness Meditation To Increase The Efficacy Of Mirror Visual Feedback For Reducing Phantom Limb Pain In Amputees, Nicolas Sebastian Mills

Doctoral Dissertations

Phantom limb pain is a chronic pain condition that negatively impacts the lives of over half of amputees, and results in considerable morbidity. Currently, there is no gold standard for treatment for phantom limb pain. However, a frequently used intervention is the use of mirror visual feedback, in which the amputee watches the reflection of the adjacent non-amputated limb move and exercise. In the last few decades, mindfulness-based interventions have been increasingly used with individuals living with different types of chronic pain. This study attempts to discover if the addition of a mindfulness-based intervention, such as guided meditation, will augment …

Effects Of Sleep On Intrusive Symptoms And Emotional Reactivity In A Laboratory-Based Film Analog Study, Anna Marie Thi Thanh Nguyen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by four symptom clusters. Recently, research highlights the need to focus on the impact of intrusive symptoms as a possible risk factor for the development and maintenance of PTSD. Cognitive and sleep models contribute to further understanding of intrusive symptoms. Recent work also highlights disgust as an emotion closely associated with the emergence of posttraumatic stress symptomology following traumatic events. This study used a film eliciting disgust in order to examine the effects of sleep on the intensity of intrusion symptoms and emotion reactivity. The sample consisted of 49 college students randomly assigned to …

The Association Between Type-2 Diabetes Pathophysiology & Exercise Adherence, Sydney Raymond

Senior Honors Projects

According to the American Diabetes Association, 1 in 3 Americans will be diagnosed with diabetes. While some of these individuals will be prescribed medications as part of their treatment, most will also be advised to begin an exercise program to assist with blood glucose control. Additionally, while regular exercise is associated with lower HbA1C and decreased insulin/medication dependence, it is estimated that only about half of those diagnosed with diabetes will adhere to their exercise plans. Social, psychological, and physiological factors all play roles in affecting ones ability to adhere to an exercise regiment, and individuals with Type 2 Diabetes …

Super Placebos: A Feasibility Study Combining Contextual Factors To Promote Placebo Effects, Jay A. Olson, Michael Lifshitz, Amir Raz, Samuel P. L. Veissière

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Background: Ample evidence demonstrates that placebo effects are modulated by contextual factors. Few interventions, however, attempt to combine a broad range of these factors. Here, we explore the therapeutic power of placebos by leveraging factors including social proof, positive suggestion, and social learning. This study aimed to test the feasibility of an elaborate “super placebo” intervention to reduce symptoms of various disorders in a pediatric population.

Methods: In a single-arm qualitative study, participants entered an inactive MRI scanner which they were told could help their brain heal itself through the power of suggestion. The sample included 11 children (6–13 years …

Anxiety And Mood Disorders Impacting Physician Opioid Prescribing In The Pediatric Hospital Setting, Candice D. Donaldson, Zeev N. Kain, Louis Ehwerhemuepha, Michelle A. Fortier, Michael T. Phan, Daniel M. Tomaszewski, Sun Yang, William Feaster, Brooke N. Jenkins

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

This research examined whether pediatric inpatients without an anxiety/mood disorder are more likely to receive opioids in response to pain compared to patients diagnosed with a mental health condition. Research questions were tested using cross-sectional inpatient electronic medical record data. Propensity score matching was used to match patients with a disorder with patients without the disorder (anxiety analyses: N = 2892; mood analyses: N = 1042). Although patients with anxiety and mood disorders experienced greater pain, physicians were less likely to order opioids for these patients. Analyses also disclosed an interaction of anxiety with pain—the pain-opioid relation was stronger for …

A One-Session, Brief Acceptance And Commitment Therapy Workshop For Chronic Pain Patients: A One-Sample Pretest-Posttest Prospective Exploratory Study, Kelly Anne Thomas Ms

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Chronic pain affects one in every four persons (NIH, 2010). For individuals residing in rural communities where chronic pain treatment is often not accessible (Artnak et al., 2011), a one-session brief mental health intervention is a critical healthcare need. More specifically, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for chronic pain is a novel treatment approach in need of more research (Society of Clinical Psychology, 2016). This current study contributes to the gap in the literature by implementing an ACT workshop in a rural healthcare setting for individuals with chronic pain. It was hypothesized that the workshop would increase adaptive coping mechanisms …

And The Stars Look Very Different Today, Amy Rogin

The STEAM Journal

A personal reflection about synesthesia

Keep Calm Or Get Excited? Examining The Effects Of Different Types Of Positive Affect On Responses To Acute Pain, Amanda M. Acevedo, Kate A. Leger, Brooke N. Jenkins, Sarah D. Pressman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Researchers typically assume that all forms of positive affect (PA) are equally beneficial for attenuating the physiological stress response. We tested whether this association is more nuanced by examining the role of arousal level of PA on physiological responses to acute pain. Participants (N = 283, 75.6% female, M_age = 20.6) were randomized to a low, mid, or high arousal (calm, happy, and excited, respectively) induction condition or to a neutral control and then completed an acute pain-inducing cold pressor task. Sympathetic and parasympathetic responses along with self-reported pain and distress were assessed. Results indicated that the calm condition …

The Impact Of Parental Health Mindset On Postoperative Recovery In Children, Alexandra Kain, Claudia Mueller, Brenda J. Goliamu, Brooke N. Jenkins, Michelle A. Fortier

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Background

Mindset, or one’s beliefs about the ability to change one’s outcomes, has been studied in the educational domain but not in surgical settings. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of parental health mindset on children’s recovery.

Methods

Participants were part of a larger National Institutes of Health‐funded trial that included 1470 children undergoing outpatient tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. We used measures of parental coping style (Monitor Blunter Style Scale; MBSS) and medication attitudes (Medication Attitudes Questionnaire; MAQ) to validate the Health Beliefs Scale (HBS; Criterion validity, Cohen’s kappa). HBS categorizes parents as having a growth mindset, …

Student Wellbeing And Open Studio Process In The School Curriculum, Maria Kim

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This study aimed to explore whether Open Studio Process (OSP) increased wellbeing of middle and high school students when facilitated by teachers as a part of the regular art curriculum. It was hypothesized that OSP might increase the sense of wellbeing among middle and high school students as well as facilitating teachers. The research was conducted as a mixed methods study in South Korea where students need preventative interventions for their wellbeing. The researcher trained eight teachers to facilitate OSP and five of them implemented it with their classes for seven sessions. Quantitative data (K-YSR; pre- and posttest) were collected …

Art And The Pursuit Of Happiness: How Artists Use Art To Promote Their Emotional Well-Being, August Namuth, Bruce Chase

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Artists have used art’s positive mental and physical health effects for as long as art has been around. Art is known to have many therapeutic and mood benefiting effects, from reduced anxiety and stress levels, to increased confidence and a sense of purpose. Many different clinical studies have found art to be beneficial to people who have suffered from PTSD, bipolar disorder, strokes, and cancer pain. Despite the clearly beneficial effects of creativity associated with art, artists suffer from disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia at a much higher rate than the general population. This study sought to …

Pediatric Postoperative Pain Medication: Child Sex And Ethnicity Interact To Predict Parent Medication Attitudes, Vivian Luong, Harshitha V. Venkatesh, Michelle Fortier, Zeev N. Kain, Brooke N. Jenkins

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Over 85% of children experience significant pain after surgery. Despite this presence of pain, research suggests that a quarter of these children receive very little or even no pain medication at home. Such poor pain management in children can have harmful long-term consequences, both physically and psychologically. Previous research indicates that the amount of pain medication administered to children in the home may be significantly impacted by beliefs and attitudes parents have regarding analgesics. Given this, the purpose of the present study is to identify which demographic factors are associated with certain parent analgesic attitudes or misconceptions among pediatric patients …

Doctor Recommendations Are Related To Patient Interest And Use Of Behavioral Treatment For Chronic Pain And Addiction, Lisa M. Mcandrew, Alexandria Brunkow, Margeaux Cannon, Fiona S. Graff, Jessica L. Martin, Leslie R.M. Hausmann

Educational & Counseling Psychology Faculty Scholarship

The opioid crisis has highlighted the importance of improving patients’ access to behavioral treatments for chronic pain and addiction. What is not known is if patients are interested in receiving these treatments. In this cross-sectional study, over 1000 participants with chronic pain were surveyed using an anonymous online questionnaire on Amazon Mechanical Turk (Mturk) to investigate participants’ use of and interest in pharmacological and behavioral treatments for chronic pain and addiction. Participants also indicated whether their doctor had recommended these treatments. The majority of participants reported using medication for their pain (83.19%) and that their doctor recommended medication (85.05%), whereas …

Effects Of Appalachian Culture And Pregnancy Status On Pain-Related Fear, Cecelia Irene Nelson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Fear of pain during pregnancy is an understudied phenomenon with important implications for prenatal and postpartum functioning. The aim of the current study was to understand the role of pregnancy and culture on pain-related fear in Appalachia. Archival datasets, and a new sample of women recruited via Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, were sources of data. Participants completed the Fear of Pain Questionnaire-9 and responded to demographic questions in order to ascertain whether they were pregnant at the time of the study as well as the number and nature of prior pregnancies. In support of hypotheses, results indicated that pregnant women reported …

Doubled Up With Pain: Applying A Relational Framework To The Primary Care Provider - Chronic Pain Patient Relationship, Rebecca Hillel

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Treatment relationships between primary care providers (PCPs) and chronic pain patients are often rife with difficult interpersonal dynamics and experienced by both parties as being noncollaborative. It is important that PCPs are provided with recommendations to make these treatment relationships more collaborative. Relational psychological frameworks, such as intersubjectivity, can teach PCPs how to improve their relationships with chronic pain patients. This paper focuses on how to strengthen the working alliance between PCPs and chronic pain patients using intersubjective principles. Conceptualizing the working alliance from an intersubjective lens gives PCPs guidance about where to turn if their treatment relationships with chronic …

Chronic Pain Acceptance: Optimism Mediates The Relation Between Dispositional Mindfulness And Pain Acceptance, Kelli Miles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Chronic pain is associated with many indicators of maladjustment. We expected that five individual components of dispositional mindfulness would be positively associated with pain willingness (Hypothesis 1) and activity engagement (Hypothesis 2). A mediational hypothesis was tested, whereby dispositional mindfulness would be positively associated with optimism and optimism would in turn be positively associated with both pain willingness and activity engagement (Hypothesis 3). Both Hypothesis 1 and 2 were partially supported. Acting with awareness and nonjudging were the only mindfulness components that were positively associated with pain willingness. Other components of mindfulness were either negatively associated with pain willingness …