Relationships among clinical characteristics of chronic pain after spinal cord injury.
OBJECTIVE
To define relationships among various clinical characteristics of pain occurring after spinal cord injury (SCI).


METHODS
Postal survey.


METHODS
General community.


METHODS
Of 330 subjects with SCI reporting chronic pain in a previous survey, 217 volunteered.


METHODS
Not applicable.


METHODS
Detailed pain history.


RESULTS
Participants had been injured for an average of 8.2 +/- 5.1 years and 55.4% were tetraplegic. Most subjects marked multiple areas on a pain drawing with the back area most frequently (61.8%) indicated. The most common qualities reported were burning pain (59.9%) and aching pain (54.4%). Burning was significantly associated with pain in frontal parts of torso and genitals, buttocks, and lower extremities, whereas aching was significantly associated with neck and shoulders and back. The factor analysis of the relationships between level of injury, location of pain, quality of pain, pain intensity rating, duration of pain breaks, and time for pain onset resulted in 3 groupings: (1) multiple pain locations, burning pain, lower extremity; (2) aching pain, shoulder and neck, cervical injury; and (3) early onset of pain, no breaks to short breaks of pain, and high average pain intensity.


CONCLUSIONS
Relationships among various clinical features of pain after SCI reveal common clinical patterns important for increased understanding of pain mechanisms and for the design of therapeutic interventions for pain management.
Widerström-Noga
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EG
Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33101, USA. ewiderst@miamiproj.med.miami.edu
Felipe-Cuervo
E
E
Yezierski
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RP
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002908:Chronic Disease; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D059408:Pain Management; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011782:Quadriplegia / Q000150:complications; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors