Pain Catastrophizing and Fear of Pain Predict the Experience of Pain in Body Parts Not Targeted by a Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness Procedure.
The present study examined whether pain catastrophizing and pain-related fear predict the experience of pain in body regions that are not targeted by an experimental muscle injury protocol. A delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) protocol was used to induce pain unilaterally in the pectoralis, serratus, trapezius, latissimus dorsi, and deltoid muscles. The day after the DOMS protocol, participants were asked to rate their pain as they lifted weighted canisters with their targeted (ie, injured) arm and their nontargeted arm. The lifting task is a nonnoxious stimulus unless participants are already experiencing musculoskeletal pain. Therefore, reports of pain on the nontargeted arm were operationalized as pain in response to a nonnoxious stimulus. Eighty-two healthy university students (54 men, 28 women) completed questionnaires on pain catastrophizing and fear of pain and went through the DOMS protocol. The analyses revealed that catastrophizing and pain-related fear prospectively predicted pain experience in response to a nonnoxious stimulus. The possible mechanisms underlying this effect and clinical implications are discussed.


CONCLUSIONS
Pain catastrophizing and fear of pain prospectively predict the pain experience in response to a nonnoxious stimulus. The pattern of findings is consistent with the predictions of current models of generalization of pain-related fear.
Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Center for Excellence on Generalization Research in Health and Psychopathology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Electronic address: nilsgeorg.niederstrasser@ppw.kuleuven.be.
Nils Georg
NG
Niederstrasser
Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Center for Excellence on Generalization Research in Health and Psychopathology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Ann
A
Meulders
Department of Informatics, Simulation and Modeling, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Research Group on Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Michel
M
Meulders
Department of Psychology, University of Ohio, Athens, Ohio.
P Maxwell
PM
Slepian
Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Center for Excellence on Generalization Research in Health and Psychopathology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Johan W S
JW
Vlaeyen
Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Michael J L
MJ
Sullivan
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001132:Arm / Q000503:physiopathology; D058443:Catastrophization; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D005793:Generalization, Psychological; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity; D063806:Myalgia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D058748:Pain Perception; D010812:Physical Stimulation; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D057566:Self Report; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
Generalization; delayed-onset muscle soreness; fear of pain; multisite pain; pain catastrophizing