title: Pain symptomatology and pain medication use in civilian PTSD.
abstract: The comorbidity of pain syndromes and trauma-related syndromes has been shown to be high. However, there have been limited data, especially in civilian medical populations, on the role of trauma-related disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on chronic pain and pain medication use. We analyzed 647 general hospital patients in primary care and obstetrics and gynecological waiting rooms for the experience of trauma and PTSD-related stress disorders. PTSD symptoms were found to be significantly positively correlated with pain ratings (r=.282, P<0.001) and pain-related functional impairment (r=0.303, P<0.001). Those with a current PTSD diagnosis had significantly higher subjective pain and pain-related impairment ratings than those with no PTSD. Furthermore, those with a current diagnosis of PTSD were significantly more likely to have used opioid analgesics for pain control compared to those without a diagnosis of PTSD (χ(2)=8.98, P=0.011). When analyzing the separate PTSD symptom subclusters (re-experiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal), all symptom clusters were significantly related to pain and pain-related impairment ratings, but only the avoidance cluster was significantly related to prior opioid pain medication use. We conclude that PTSD and trauma-related disorders are common in impoverished medical populations and that their presence should be examined in patients with pain syndromes. Furthermore, these data suggest that PTSD and pain may share a vulnerability pathway, including the endogenous opioid neurotransmission systems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA Atlanta VA Medical Center, Atlanta, GA, USA Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD, USA Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Justine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Phifer
authors.forename: Kelly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Skelton
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: Ann C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: Aliza
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wingo
authors.forename: Charles F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Gillespie
authors.forename: Lauren A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Sands
authors.forename: Saleem
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sayyar
authors.forename: Bekh
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bradley
authors.forename: Tanja
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jovanovic
authors.forename: Kerry J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Ressler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000379:methods; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013577:Syndrome
chemical_list: D018712:Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid