title: Sensory Symptom Profiles of Patients With Neuropathic Pain After Spinal Cord Injury.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Individuals experiencing neuropathic pain (NP) after spinal cord injury (SCI) present with a variety of pain descriptors in different combinations and at different intensities. These sensory features form distinct patterns, known as sensory symptom profiles.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the present cross-sectional study, we have used a multivariate statistical method (multiple correspondence analysis) to categorize the sensory symptom profiles of a cohort of 338 patients with at-level or below-level NP after SCI. We also investigated possible associations between positive neuropathic symptoms and features of the neurological lesion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The majority of participants had a combination of pain descriptors, with 59% presenting with 3 or 4 pain subtypes. No significant associations were found between specific pain profiles and etiology or clinical degree of the neurological lesion. Furthermore, similar symptom profiles were seen in patients with at-level and below-level NP. The most frequent pattern observed in patients with cervical SCI consisted predominantly of electric shocks and tingling, without burning, pressure pain, or allodynia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Classification of SCI-NP patients into the 5 groups identified in the present study based on their distinct sensory symptom profiles may allow identification of those most likely to respond to a specific analgesic approach.
authors.affiliation: *Institut Guttmann Neurorehabilitation Institute †Institute for Health Science Research Germans Trias i Pujol, Carretera Canyet, Badalona ‡Unit of Infections and Cancer (UNIC), Cancer Epidemiology Research Program (CERP), Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO)-IDI-49 BELL, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Avda Gran Via §GRAAL, Unit of Biostatistics, Faculty of Medicine ∥Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, and Institute of Neurosciences, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona ¶Consortium Center for Biomedical Research in Network for Neurodegenerative Disease (CIBERNED), Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Maria Dolors
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Soler
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moriña
authors.forename: Neus
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.forename: Joan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Saurí
authors.forename: Joan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vidal
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Navarro
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Navarro
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000145:classification / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult