title: Pain is Associated to Clinical, Psychological, Physical, and Neurophysiological Variables in Women With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate potential relationships of clinical (age, function, side of pain, years with pain), physical (cervical range of motion, pinch grip force), psychological (depression), and neurophysiological (pressure and thermal pain thresholds) outcomes and hand pain intensity in carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS).
  
  
  METHODS
  Two hundred and forty-four (n=224) women with CTS were recruited. Demographic data, duration of the symptoms, function and severity of the disease, pain intensity, depression, cervical range of motion, pinch tip grip force, heat/cold pain thresholds (HPT/CPT), and pressure pain thresholds (PPT) were collected. Correlation and regression analysis were performed to determine the association among those variables and to determine the proportions of explained variance in hand pain intensity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant negative correlations existed between the intensity of pain and PPTs over the radial nerve, C5/C6 zygapophyseal joint, carpal tunnel and tibialis anterior muscle, HPT over the carpal tunnel, cervical extension and lateral-flexion, and thumb-middle, fourth, and little finger pinch tip forces. Significant positive correlations between the intensity of hand pain with function and depression were also observed. Stepwise regression analyses revealed that function, thumb-middle finger pinch, thumb-little finger pinch, depression, PPT radial nerve, PPT carpal tunnel, and HPT carpal tunnel were significant predictors of intensity of hand pain (R²=0.364; R² adjusted=0.343; F=16.87; P<0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that 36.5% of the variance of pain intensity was associated to clinical (function), neurophysiological (localized PPT and HPT), psychological (depression), and physical (finger pinch tip force) outcomes in women with chronic CTS.
authors.affiliation: Departments of *Psychology†Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation, and Physical Medicine, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, University Rey Juan Carlos, Alcorcón, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Fernández-Muñoz
authors.forename: María
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Palacios-Ceña
authors.forename: Margarita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cigarán-Méndez
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ortega-Santiago
authors.forename: Ana I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: de-la-Llave-Rincón
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Salom-Moreno
authors.forename: César
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fernández-de-las-Peñas
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002349:Carpal Tunnel Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006930:Hyperalgesia / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D010146:Pain / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D010147:Pain Measurement; D017288:Pain Threshold / Q000502:physiology*; D010808:Physical Examination; D010812:Physical Stimulation / Q000009:adverse effects; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D055815:Young Adult