title: 'Two pains together': patient perspectives on psychological aspects of chronic pain while living with HIV.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Chronic pain is common in HIV-infected individuals. Understanding HIV-infected patients' chronic pain experience not just from a biological, but also from a psychological perspective, is a critical first step toward improving care for this population. Our objective was to explore HIV-infected patients' perspectives on psychological aspects of chronic pain using in-depth qualitative interviews.
  
  
  METHODS
  Investigators engaged in an iterative process of independent and group coding until theme saturation was reached.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 25 patients with chronic pain interviewed, 20 were male, 15 were younger than age 50, and 15 were African-American. Key themes that emerged included the close relationship between mood and pain; mood and pain in the context of living with HIV; use of alcohol/drugs to self-medicate for pain; and the challenge of receiving prescription pain medications while dealing with substance use disorders.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results suggest that psychological approaches to chronic pain treatment may be well received by HIV-infected patients.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America; Division of Gerontology, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Jessica S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Merlin
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Melonie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Walcott
authors.affiliation: Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America; Jewish Home of San Francisco Center for Research on Aging, San Francisco, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ritchie
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Herbey
authors.affiliation: Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America; Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Stefan G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Kertesz
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chamot
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Saag
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America.
authors.forename: Janet M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Turan
mesh_terms: D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000523:psychology*; D015497:HIV-1; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged