Predictors of the Transition from Acute to Persistent Pain in Children
What is the name of the article?
Predictors of the transition from acute to persistent musculoskeletal pain in children and adolescents: a prospective study
What was the goal of this study?
The goal of this study was to look at what can make young people, ages 10-17, more likely to have chronic, or long-lasting, pain in the muscles or other parts of the body that support the muscles.
What did we find?
After measuring young patients’ pain and their response to pain stimulus, about 35 percent of youth continued to have pain at a follow-up visit four months later. They had a higher chance of this outcome if they were female and had lower pain modulation, or greater sensitivity to a heat pain task while also being exposed to pain from cold water. Patients who had higher scores on a depression measure when their acute pain started had more disability and worse quality of life at the follow-up visit.
What did we learn?
These findings suggest that responses to the pain test used and risk factors measured are important to look at for young people to get better after having acute musculoskeletal pain.
Why is this important?
When young people have a lot of pain it affects their daily lives and their families. There is a need for more tools and resources to help young people with musculoskeletal pain recover without lasting pain. This is important because having long lasting pain can impact their future health and whether they have a disability.
Who are the authors of the study?
Amy Lewandowski Holley, Ph.D.1, Anna C. Wilson, Ph.D.1, and Tonya M. Palermo, Ph.D.2
Authors from: 1. OHSU Institute on Development and Disability, 2. University of Washington Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
Holley, A. L., Wilson, A. C., & Palermo, T. M. (2017). Predictors of the transition from acute to persistent musculoskeletal pain in children and adolescents: a prospective study. Pain, 158(5), 794-801. https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000817
Key Words:
Musculoskeletal pain: Pain that affects the muscles and the parts of the body that support the muscles like ligaments, tendons, and bones.
Acute pain: Pain that comes on quickly and lasts less than three months.
Risk factor: Something that makes the chance of having a disease, pain, disability, or poor health greater.