Pain in women with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis and in healthy women: a comparative study.
The purpose of this study was to examine multidimensional aspects of pain in women with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and in healthy women. A cross-sectional, comparative design was used. The convenience sample included 40 women with RRMS and 40 healthy women. Participants completed the Brief Pain Inventory-Long Form and the McGill Pain Questionnaire-Short Form. The women with RRMS had a significantly higher presence of pain (p = .005), present pain intensity (p = .02), average pain intensity (p = .001), pain interference (p = .0008), and pain in different locations (p = .02) than healthy women. Pain has significant nursing implications for women with RRMS. Women with RRMS could benefit from a comprehensive pain assessment and management strategy. Nursing care should be designed to focus on interventions for minimizing and managing pain in women with RRMS.
Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, IL, USA. pnewlan@siue.edu
Pamela
P
Newland
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D020529:Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / Q000150:complications* / Q000451:nursing; D010146:Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D010147:Pain Measurement; D015995:Prevalence; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology