Abstract
Background: Neck pain is a common disease ranking 4th highest as years lived with disability according to Global
Burden of Disease 2010. Patients with chronic neck pain often present with a variety of other symptoms. Some of these
may depend upon the origin being traumatic or not.
Pain drawings are used widely clinically in the initial phase of assessment of neck pain patients. Pain drawing is a
method of gathering data, the pain area, regarding patients’ pain extent. The drawing represents the patient’s perception
of pain localisation and pain extent. Pain areas may represent psychological factors and/or decreased function of the
involved body parts.
Purpose: To study the relation between pain extent with 1) quality of life, 2) kinesiophobia, depression, 3) cervical muscle
function and mobility and additionally the relation of pain extent with the origin of pain being traumatic or non-traumatic in
chronic neck pain patients.
Methods: In this correlation-study patients from primary and secondary healthcare locations with chronic neck pain (200)
with traumatic or non-traumatic origin participated. Participants completed pain drawings, as well as questionnaires:
Short Form 36 (SF36), Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK), Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-ll), Neck Disability Index
(NDI) and clinical tests: Craniocervical Flexion Test (CCFT), Cervical Extension Test (CE), and Cervical Range of Motion
(CROM).
Results: Significant positive correlations were observed between pain extent and NDI (r = 0.33; p<0.001), TSK (r=0.21;
p=0.012) and BDI-II (r=0.29; p<0.001), in addition to significant negative correlations of pain extent to CCFT (r=-0.24;
p=0.001) and CE (r=-0.19; p=0.006). Correlations between pain extent and SF-36 or CROM were non-significant, and
there was no difference in pain extent related to the origin being traumatic or non-traumatic.
Conclusion: Pain extent extracted from pain drawings are moderately correlated with patient-reported neck function, and
weakly correlated with depression, kinesiophobia and cervical clinical tests. In clinical decision-making, pain extent may
indicate reduced neck function and be a sign for possible depression, kinesiophobia and poor cervical muscle function in
chronic neck pain patients of both traumatic and non-traumatic origin.
Implications: Pain extent from pain drawings of this group of patients does weakly relate to psychological factors, muscle
function, but more moderately to self-reported neck function. For the clinician, information gained from pain drawings can
indicate the need for assessing these factors with a more in-depth examination. Pain drawings may therefore assist in
guiding and targeting the clinical assessment. Therefore, use of pain drawings in clinical assessment may be relevant as
part of the clinical decision-making process and be used for generating clinical hypotheses as part of the functional
assessment, and in conjunction with other relevant outcomes.
Funding Acknowledgements: This study received funding from the Research Fund of the Region of Southern Denmark,
the Danish Rheumatism Association, the Research Foundation of the Danish Association of Physiotherapy, Fund for
Physiotherapy in Private Practice, and the Danish Society of Polio and Accident Victims (PTU).
Ethics Approval: The trial was registered in www.ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT01431261. The Regional Scientific
Ethics Committee of Southern Denmark approved the study (S-20100069). The study conformed to The Declaration of
Helsinki 2008 [39] by fulfilling all general ethical recommendations.
Disclosure of Interest: None Declared
Keywords: Chronic neck pain, pain drawing, quality of life
Translated title of the contribution | Relationen mellem smerteudbredelse og livskvalitet, psykologiske faktorer og nakkefunktion hos patienter med kroniske nakkemserter. |
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Original language | English |
Publication date | 2016 |
Number of pages | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2016 |
Event | IFOMPT: The International Federation of Orthopaedic Manipulative Physical Therapists - Glasgow, United Kingdom Duration: 4. Jul 2016 → 8. Jul 2016 |
Conference
Conference | IFOMPT |
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Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
City | Glasgow |
Period | 04/07/2016 → 08/07/2016 |