Pain Experience (pain + experience)

Distribution by Scientific Domains
Distribution within Medical Sciences


Selected Abstracts


Adolescents' Pain Experiences Following Acute Blunt Traumatic Injury: Struggle for Internal Control

JOURNAL FOR SPECIALISTS IN PEDIATRIC NURSING, Issue 4 2007
Margie Crandall
ISSUES AND PURPOSE.,Although blunt trauma injury is a common cause for adolescent pain, little is known about the experience of pain as perceived by adolescents. DESIGN AND METHOD.,Semistructured interviews were conducted with 13 adolescents following blunt trauma injury. Two age-appropriate valid measures (i.e., Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool and Temporal Dot Matrix) were incorporated into the interviews to elaborate their pain experiences. Grounded theory method was used to analyze data and build substantive theory. RESULTS.,Adolescents' behavioral and cognitive actions (i.e., "internal control") to manage and endure pain were influenced by their pain perceptions, physical losses, and clinicians' actions. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS.,Nurses, family members, and peers have a crucial role in alleviating adolescents' distress and pain. [source]


Patients' experiences of hip fracture

JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 4 2003
Graeme Archibald BA MSc RN
Background., Hip fracture is a major cause of mortality and morbidity, particularly among older people, but there is little information on how individuals experience this. Aims., This study was conducted to explore the experiences of individuals who had suffered a hip fracture. The aim was not to produce generalizable findings but, rather, to generate a rich description of the experience of incurring and recovering from a hip fracture, to inform nursing practice. Method., Phenomenological methodology was used. A purposeful sample of five older patients was interviewed, following a stay in a community hospital for rehabilitation after surgical repair of a hip fracture. The unstructured interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed for significant statements and meanings. Findings., Four major themes emerged: the injury experience, the pain experience, the recovery experience and the disability experience. The injury experience consisted of storytelling, recalling the experience of the injury itself. The pain experience consisted of coping with the pain. The recovery experience involved the operation, beginning the struggle of recovery, and regaining independence. The disability experience consisted of the disability itself, depending on others, and being housebound. Conclusions., Pain management, meeting psychological and physical needs for nursing care, planning for discharge, and ensuring a reasonable quality of life are areas for nursing care development. Consideration of appropriate settings for rehabilitation is needed and there should be further investigation into improving quality of life after discharge. [source]


Opioid-taking tasks and behaviours in Taiwanese outpatients with cancer

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 15 2008
Shu-Yuan Liang PhD Candidate
Aim., The aim of this study was to describe those tasks and behaviours that contribute to self-efficacy in the context of opioid-taking in Taiwanese outpatients with cancer and to explore those factors that influence a patient's self-efficacy with engaging in these behaviours. Background., Self-management with prescribed opioid regimen has become a necessary component of the cancer pain experience at home. Tailoring prescribed regimens is a complex and continuing effort for cancer pain control. Few studies, however, have explored the specific skills and behaviours required by patients to manage their opioid analgesics effectively. Design., A qualitative approach was used to explore those behaviours that contribute to patients' ability to self-manage medication for their cancer pain. Method., Ten Taiwanese cancer patients aged between 41,75 years attending two oncology outpatient departments, who were prescribed opioid analgesics, were interviewed. All interviews were tape-recorded and were transcribed verbatim. Qualitative content analysis was undertaken to identify categories. Results., Five main categories of behaviours were identified, which reflected patient's perceptions of the actions required for effective opioid-taking. These behavioural domains included communicating about pain and analgesic-taking, taking analgesics according to schedule, obtaining help, tailoring medication regimens and managing treatment-related concerns. In addition, patients described various situations in which performance of these behaviours was more or less difficult. Conclusions., Our results suggest that self-efficacy with opioid-taking includes not only beliefs about the ability to communicate, but also the ability to fulfil more complex tailoring of medication regimens and management of treatment-related concerns. Relevance to clinical practice., Health professionals need to incorporate strategies to assist cancer patients' ability to engage in these behaviours and to manage situational impediments that may influence this ability. More importantly, clinicians need to assist patients to enhance their beliefs in their ability in overcoming various situation impediments for opioid-taking. [source]


Patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty: a perioperative pain experience

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 4 2006
Margareta Warrén Stomberg PhD
Aim., The aim was to evaluate patient's perioperative pain experience after total hip replacement and patients' satisfaction with pain management. Background., Total hip arthroplasty is a common surgical procedure intended to reduce pain and return patients to better function. Realistic expectations about total hip arthroplasty is important for optimal postoperative recovery and the information must be adapted to fit the individual patient. Methods., A descriptive design was used comparing patients outcome data. Pitman's test was used for statistical analyses. Adult patients (n = 112) undergoing surgical hip replacement procedures answered a 17-item questionnaire on the fourth postoperative day. The questionnaire included given alternatives and visual analogue scales (0,100 mm) for the pain assessment. Result., The patients' postoperative pain experience after hip replacement surgery was in average low, 33·1 mm on a 100 mm visual analogue scale. Patient's pain experience was reported to be highest on the first postoperative day for most of the patients. The preoperative pain experience tends to be higher than the postoperative pain experience. Older patients reported less average pain level postoperatively. Satisfaction with pain management was high. Conclusion., The pain experience tends to be higher preoperatively than postoperatively. Patients who reported a higher pain experience postoperatively reported that their pain experience was significant higher than preoperative expected. Relevance to practice., It is important for the postoperative outcome measure that the patients have a realistic expectation of pain experiences after total hip arthroplasty. The nurse is one of the staff members responsible for information to the individual patient. [source]


McGill Pain Questionnaire: A multi-dimensional verbal scale assessing postoperative changes in pain symptoms associated with severe endometriosis

JOURNAL OF OBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY RESEARCH (ELECTRONIC), Issue 4 2009
Elena Fabbri
Abstract Background:, Objective evaluation of pelvic pain symptoms using a standard pain questionnaire is essential to assessing the treatment of endometriosis and related pain. Aim:, To evaluate the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ) as a multi-dimensional verbal scale in providing information about chronic pelvic pain associated with endometriosis, before and after laparoscopic surgery. Methods:, Fifty-five women undergoing laparoscopy for severe endometriosis were asked to complete the MPQ before surgery and at the 6-month follow up. All patients presented with preoperative pain symptoms of variable severity. We obtained the pain indexes and studied their relation with: patients' characteristics (age, body mass index, parity, qualification, occupation); operative findings (number, site and size of endometriotic lesions and presence of pelvic adhesions); and postoperative evolution of variable MPQ pain indexes at the 6-month follow up. Results:, Median present pain index (PPI) (index of pain intensity), before surgical treatment was 3 (2,4): preoperative PPI was <2 in 25% of patients while 25% of patients had PPI > 4. Overall median PPI after surgical treatment was 1 (0,2): postoperative index of pain intensity was <1 in 50% of patients, >2 in 25% of patients while 25% of patients did not experience postoperative pain. Overall pain intensity significantly decreased after laparoscopic treatment of endometriosis (Wilcoxon test P < 0.0005). None of the patients' characteristics were found to be significantly correlated with the severity or improvement of preoperative pain at postoperative follow up (P > 0.05), and the intensity of preoperative pain was not correlated to any of the operative variables. There was a significant reduction in all individual MPQ pain indexes; however 18.2% of women did not show improvement of pain symptoms after laparoscopic surgery. An increasing endometrioma diameter was associated with a significant decrease in the difference in evaluative rank score of pain rating index between pain indexes at the 6-month follow up and preoperatively (P = 0.04, Spearman's rank correlation Rho = ,0.277). Conclusions:, MPQ appears to be useful as a multi-dimensional scale in describing patients' pain semiology and evaluating pain evolution after surgical treatment. However, due to the extreme variability of pain experience, MPQ results don't clarify the relationship between pain intensity and the severity of endometriosis. [source]


Anxiety and pain experience of patients undergoing intra-oral buccal mucosa biopsy

ORAL SURGERY, Issue 3 2009
C.S. Barrett
Abstract Aim:, The aim of this study was to investigate anxiety levels, expected pain and actual pain experienced by patients undergoing intra-oral biopsy. Materials and methods:, Forty-four patients who required a single site, buccal mucosa biopsy under local anaesthesia as their first ever oral biopsy were recruited. Data were collected immediately before and after their biopsy procedure. This included demographic information, state and trait sections of Spielberger's State Trait Anxiety Inventory and 100 mm visual analogue scales for expected pain and actual pain. Data were analysed using paired t -tests, independent t -tests and Pearson's product moment correlation coefficient. Results and conclusions:, Patients were anxious pre-operatively (mean s-anxiety 42.02), which was a highly statistically significant rise above baseline (P < 0.001). Patients expected (40.4) significantly (P < 0.001) higher pain from the procedure than they actually experienced (4.5). There were some indicators that women and patients with high trait anxiety were more likely to be anxious pre-operatively. [source]


The Relationship between Empathy and Estimates of Observed Pain

PAIN MEDICINE, Issue 2 2009
A. D. Green MSc
ABSTRACT Objective., Recent research suggests that higher scores on measures of empathy correlate with a stronger response to observed pain, as well as higher estimates of pain intensity. Little work to date has examined the impact of empathy on evaluations of different levels of expressed pain, or how empathy may alter the accuracy of interpreting these painful facial expressions. This study examines the role of empathy in rating the intensity of facial expressions of pain, and the accuracy of these ratings relative to self-reported pain. The potential mediating role of available pain cues or the moderating role of gender on this relationship are also examined. Methods., Undergraduate participants (observers, N = 130) were shown video clips of facial expressions of individuals from a cold presser pain task (senders), and then asked to estimate that pain experience. This estimate was compared with the video sender's actual pain ratings. Results., Higher empathy was associated with an overall increase in estimates of senders' pain, which was not mediated by video subject or participant gender or the duration of painful facial expressions. Further analyses revealed that high empathy was associated with greater accuracy in inferring pain on only one of three inferential accuracy indices. Conclusions., While observers with greater empathy may infer greater pain in senders, resulting in a smaller underestimation bias overall, they are not necessarily more accurate in estimating pain on any given stimuli. The importance of these potential differences in perceived pain for clinical assessment and interpersonal relationships are discussed. [source]


Confirming the Theoretical Structure of the Japanese Version of the McGill Pain Questionnaire in Chronic Pain

PAIN MEDICINE, Issue 1 2001
Mamoru Hasegawa MD
Objective., Based upon a tripartite theoretical model of pain, the Pain Rating Index of the McGill Pain Questionnaire continues to be one of the most frequently used instruments to measure clinical pain. However, differences in languages and cultural backgrounds have hindered its wide use and standardization in Japan. Although a number of exploratory factor analytic studies have failed to consistently support the theoretical structure of the instrument, a few previous confirmatory factor analytic studies did statistically support the a priori model. The purpose of this study was to test the theoretical structure of a Japanese version of the McGill Pain Questionnaire, which followed a format similar to the original questionnaire, through a confirmatory factor analysis. Design.,This study used confirmatory factor analysis on prospectively collected data from consecutive outpatients with chronic pain at a university hospital to test the hypothesis regarding the theoretical structure of the Japanese McGill Pain Questionnaire. Results and Conclusion.,The first 16 Pain Rating Index subclass scores were subjected to confirmatory factor analysis procedures that yielded a well-fitting final model that explained 91% of the covariance in the observed data. The results approximately supported the hypothesis that the sensory, affective, and evaluative subscales of the Pain Rating Index are representative of the multidimensionality of the pain experience with minimal overlap but could not disregard relatively high intercorrelations among those subscales similar to the original McGill Pain Questionnaire. It is suggested that the theoretical structure of the McGill Pain Questionnaire is approximately kept in the Japanese McGill Pain Questionnaire used in this study. Therefore, the translation-based Japanese McGill Pain Questionnaire used in this study adequately permits comparison of studies from English-speaking and non-English-speaking populations, thus facilitating the first step toward international research exchange and communications. [source]


Mazes, Conflict, and Paradox: Tools for Understanding Chronic Pain

PAIN PRACTICE, Issue 3 2009
Cary A. Brown PhD
Abstract This article presents an argument for framing chronic pain within a complex adaptive systems (CAS) paradigm. The first aim of this article is to demonstrate how chronic pain can be framed as a CAS and how paradox, one of the core characteristics of a CAS, exists within the chronic pain experience. The second aim is to illustrate how paradox exists at multiple levels within the health care encounter and ongoing experience of chronic pain. Finally, the article will use the example of interactions at the patient/clinician level to illustrate how health care workers' efforts to deal with issues emergent from the range of paradoxes have for the most part been ineffective, and at times harmful, to persons experiencing chronic pain. This article uses the example of chronic pain to explore how the manner in which health care providers and patients recognize and deal with paradoxes can either worsen the pain experience or help generate creative new ways to manage the chronic pain condition. The CAS principles discussed in this article hold application across a range of chronic conditions for which a traditional biomedical paradigm proves insufficient. [source]


Subjective pain experience of people with chronic back pain

PHYSIOTHERAPY RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL, Issue 4 2000
Professor Lorraine H De Souza Chair of Rehabilitation
Abstract Background and Purpose Studies into the effect of pain experience on those who have it have largely focused on the views and interpretations of researchers gained by the use of assessment tools aimed at measuring pain. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe pain, as experienced by those with chronic back pain, and to document ,insider' accounts of how pain is perceived and understood by those who have it. Method Unstructured interviews using the framework approach. Subjects were sampled for age, sex, ethnicity and occupation, from new referrals with back pain to a rheumatology outpatient clinic. Eleven subjects (5 M; 6 F) agreed to be interviewed. Interviews were unstructured, but followed a topic guide. Subjects were interviewed in English (nine) or their preferred language (two). Tape-recordings of interviews were transcribed verbatim and read in depth twice to identify the topics or concepts. Data were extracted in the form of words and phrases by use of thematic content analysis. The themes were pain description and amount of pain. An independent researcher reviewed the data and confirmed or contended the analysis. Results All subjects, except one, provided descriptors of the quality of their pain. The use of simile was common to emphasize both what the pain was, and what it was not. Five subjects expressed a loss of words in trying to describe their pain. Only 13 of 29 different pain descriptors used were commensurate with those in the McGill Pain Questionnaire (Melzack, 1983). Subjects had great difficulty quantifying their pain intensity. Several explained how the pain fluctuated, thus, quantifying pain at one point in time was problematic. Only one subject offered a numerical description of pain intensity. Conclusions Subjects provided graphic and in-depth descriptions of their pain experience, but these bore little resemblance to commonly used assessment tools. The findings challenge the appropriateness of such formal instruments. Copyright © 2000 Whurr Publishers Ltd. [source]


A new instrument for pain assessment in the immediate postoperative period,

ANAESTHESIA, Issue 4 2009
A. M. Machata
Summary Perceptual-cognitive impairment after general anaesthesia may affect the ability to reliably report pain severity with the standard visual analog scale (VAS). To minimise these limitations, we developed ,PAULA the PAIN-METER®' (PAULA): it has five coloured emoticon faces on the forefront, it is twice as long as a standard VAS scale, and patients use a slider to mark their pain experience. Forty-eight postoperative patients rated descriptive pain terms on PAULA and on a standard VAS immediately after admission and before discharge from the postanaesthesia care unit. Visual acuity was determined before both assessments. The values obtained with PAULA showed less variance than those obtained with the standard VAS, even at the first assessment, where only 23% of the patients had regained their visual acuity. Furthermore, the deviations of the absolute VAS values in individual patients for each descriptive pain term were significantly smaller with PAULA than with the standard VAS. [source]


SMS pain diary: a method for real-time data capture of recurrent pain in childhood

ACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 7 2010
Gösta AlfvénArticle first published online: 5 MAR 2010
Abstract Objectives:, To capture recurrent pain in children aged 9,15 years reported by short message service (SMS) and to test the compliance of such reporting in a pilot study. Methods:, After instructions, 15 children reported their pain six times a day on SMS for a week and the compatibility of the reporting was evaluated. The pain was expressed and reported on three variables: intensity captured using a numeric rating scale (NRS-11), duration in minutes and a verbal pain-related disability scale with six alternatives (0,5). The validity of this scale was tested in 37 children, and the reliability in a test,retest procedure in 20 children. Results:, Good compliance reporting the three variables intensity and duration of pain as well as pain-related disability on SMS was indicated. Support for construct validity and reliability of the verbal instrument for pain-related disability was achieved. Conclusion:, The study supports the hypothesis that pain experience expressed as intensity, duration and pain-related disability can be captured in real time by SMS in an inexpensive and compliant way in children aged 9,15 years. Validity and reliability was indicated for the constructed verbal pain-related disability scale. Further studies are needed to further confirm these findings. [source]


The relationship of intracanal medicaments to postoperative pain in endodontics

INTERNATIONAL ENDODONTIC JOURNAL, Issue 12 2003
E. H. Ehrmann
Abstract Aim, To investigate the relationship of postoperative pain to three different medicaments placed in the root canal after a complete biomechanical debridement of the root canal system in patients presenting for emergency relief of pain. Methodology, Two hundred and twenty-three teeth belonging to 221 patients presenting as emergencies to the Royal Dental Hospital of Melbourne were included in the study. Inclusion was limited to patients with a diagnosis of pulp necrosis and acute apical periodontitis. All teeth underwent conventional root canal treatment, which involved the instrumentation to the apices of each canal at the first visit. Canals were instrumented using a stepback technique and hand-files along with irrigants using Milton's (1% sodium hypochlorite) solution followed by 15% EDTAC. The canals were dried and one of the following three medicaments was inserted into the canal in random sequence: Group 1: Ledermix paste (Lederle Pharmaceuticals, Division of Cyanamid, Wolfratshausen, Germany); Group 2: calcium hydroxide paste (Calcipulpe, Septodont, France); and Group 3: no dressing. Before dismissal, the preoperative pain experienced on the previous night was recorded using a visual analogue pain scale. Patients were then instructed to record the degree of pain experienced 4 h after treatment and daily for a further 4 days. Results, The mean score pain for all three groups was between 42 and 48 prior to treatment being commenced. After 4 days, the pain score for Group 2 was 10, for Group 3 was 7 and for Group 1 was 4. Mean preoperative pain level was 44.4 (of a maximum 100) for all groups, and declined by 50% (to 22.1) after 24 h. Patients in Group 1 (Ledermix) experienced significantly less (P = 0.04) postoperative pain than those in the other two groups. There was no significant difference between Group 2 (calcium hydroxide) and Group 3 (no dressing). Conclusion, Under the conditions of this study, painful teeth with acute apical periodontitis that had been dressed with Ledermix paste gave rise to less pain than that experienced by patients who had a dressing of calcium hydroxide or no dressing at all. Ledermix is an effective intracanal medicament for the control of postoperative pain associated with acute apical periodontitis, with a rapid onset of pain reduction. [source]


Postoperative pain management: Study of patients' level of pain and satisfaction with health care providers' responsiveness to their reports of pain

NURSING & HEALTH SCIENCES, Issue 1 2003
Joanne W. Y. Chung RN
Abstract The present prospective survey was conducted in a 1200-bed hospital to examine postoperative patients' current pain intensity, most intense pain experienced, satisfaction with postoperative pain management, and differences regarding pain and satisfaction levels. All adult patients admitted to a hospital in Hong Kong for surgery, except those receiving local anesthesia, were eligible to enter this study. The patient outcome questionnaire developed by the American Pain Society was used to solicit data about patients' pain and satisfaction with pain relief. The subjects were 294 postoperative patients. Approximately 85% complained about varying degrees of pain during the 24 h prior to the assessment of their pain. When interviewed, most patients complained of mild to moderate pain (median = 2 on a 10-point scale), while the median for ,worst pain intensity' was 5. Approximately 80% of the subjects indicated that both the nurses and physicians reminded them to report pain when it occurred. Only 143 (48.6%) agreed that the nurses and physicians sufficiently emphasized the importance of pain relief. Those who received acute pain services, provided by anesthetists, reported lower levels of current pain intensity. Over 65% of the subjects were satisfied with all levels of health care providers, regarding their postoperative pain management. [source]


Photodynamic therapy of actinic keratosis at varying fluence rates: assessment of photobleaching, pain and primary clinical outcome

BRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2004
M.B. Ericson
Summary Background, Although photodynamic therapy (PDT) is becoming an important treatment method for skin lesions such as actinic keratosis (AK) and superficial basal cell carcinoma, there are still discussions about which fluence rate and light dose are preferable. Recent studies in rodents have shown that a low fluence rate is preferable due to depletion of oxygen at high fluence rates. However, these results have not yet been verified in humans. Objectives, The objective was to investigate the impact of fluence rate and spectral range on primary treatment outcome and bleaching rate in AK using aminolaevulinic acid PDT. In addition, the pain experienced by the patients has been monitored during treatment. Patients/methods, Thirty-seven patients (mean age 71 years) with AK located on the head, neck and upper chest were treated with PDT, randomly allocated to four groups: two groups with narrow filter (580,650 nm) and fluence rates of 30 or 45 mW cm,2, and two groups with broad filter (580,690 nm) and fluence rates of 50 or 75 mW cm,2. The total cumulative light dose was 100 J cm,2 in all treatments. Photobleaching was monitored by fluorescence imaging, and pain experienced by the patients was registered by using a visual analogue scale graded from 0 (no pain) to 10 (unbearable pain). The primary treatment outcome was evaluated at a follow-up visit after 7 weeks. Results, Our data showed a significant correlation between fluence rate and initial treatment outcome, where lower fluence rate resulted in favourable treatment response. Moreover, the photobleaching dose (1/e) was found to be related to fluence rate, ranging from 4·5 ± 1·0 J cm,2 at 30 mW cm,2, to 7·3 ± 0·7 J cm,2 at 75 mW cm,2, indicating higher oxygen levels in tissue at lower fluence rates. After a cumulative light dose of 40 J cm,2 no further photobleaching took place, implying that higher doses are excessive. No significant difference in pain experienced by the patients during PDT was observed in varying the fluence rate from 30 to 75 mW cm,2. However, the pain was found to be most intense up to a cumulative light dose of 20 J cm,2. Conclusions, Our results imply that the photobleaching rate and primary treatment outcome are dependent on fluence rate, and that a low fluence rate (30 mW cm,2) seems preferable when performing PDT of AK using noncoherent light sources. [source]


In-group reassurance in a pain setting produces lower levels of physiological arousal: direct support for a self-categorization analysis of social influence,

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2007
Michael J. Platow
A large body of research demonstrates a strong social component to people's pain experiences and pain-related behaviours. We investigate this by examining the impact of social-influence processes on laboratory-induced pain responses by manipulating the social-categorical relationship between the person experiencing pain and another who offers reassurance. We show that physiological arousal associated with laboratory-induced pain is significantly lower in normal, healthy participants following reassurance about the pain-inducing activity when that reassurance comes from an in-group member in contrast to reassurance from an out-group member and a no reassurance control. These data are consistent with predictions derived from self-categorization theory, providing convincing empirical support of its analysis of social influence using a non-reactive measure. These data also represent a clear advance within the pain literature by identifying a possible common process to the social-psychological component of pain responses. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Adolescents' Pain Experiences Following Acute Blunt Traumatic Injury: Struggle for Internal Control

JOURNAL FOR SPECIALISTS IN PEDIATRIC NURSING, Issue 4 2007
Margie Crandall
ISSUES AND PURPOSE.,Although blunt trauma injury is a common cause for adolescent pain, little is known about the experience of pain as perceived by adolescents. DESIGN AND METHOD.,Semistructured interviews were conducted with 13 adolescents following blunt trauma injury. Two age-appropriate valid measures (i.e., Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool and Temporal Dot Matrix) were incorporated into the interviews to elaborate their pain experiences. Grounded theory method was used to analyze data and build substantive theory. RESULTS.,Adolescents' behavioral and cognitive actions (i.e., "internal control") to manage and endure pain were influenced by their pain perceptions, physical losses, and clinicians' actions. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS.,Nurses, family members, and peers have a crucial role in alleviating adolescents' distress and pain. [source]


Childrens'and Adolescents'Use of Diaries for Sickle Cell Pain

JOURNAL FOR SPECIALISTS IN PEDIATRIC NURSING, Issue 4 2001
Virginia Egbert Maikler
ISSUES AND PURPOSE. To evaluate the characteristics of vaso-occlusive episodes, home management of pain and its impact on the daily activities, and a diary as a method of data collection. DESIGN AND METHODS. Forty-six adolescents and 75 children were asked to complete daily diaries during the intervention period of a larger study. RESULTS. Mild pain was recorded 95% of the time; moderate pain, 3%; and severe pain, 1%. The pattern and location of pain varied greatly. Adolescents used more interventions than did children. When pain intensity was mild, 80% of the children/adolescents maintained school, social, and home activities, but decreased play/sport activities. When pain intensity was high, they decreased their participation in all activities. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS. Sickle cell pain episodes are unpredictable and highly variable. Diaries can enhance children's and adolescents'documentation and communication about their pain experiences. [source]


Patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty: a perioperative pain experience

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 4 2006
Margareta Warrén Stomberg PhD
Aim., The aim was to evaluate patient's perioperative pain experience after total hip replacement and patients' satisfaction with pain management. Background., Total hip arthroplasty is a common surgical procedure intended to reduce pain and return patients to better function. Realistic expectations about total hip arthroplasty is important for optimal postoperative recovery and the information must be adapted to fit the individual patient. Methods., A descriptive design was used comparing patients outcome data. Pitman's test was used for statistical analyses. Adult patients (n = 112) undergoing surgical hip replacement procedures answered a 17-item questionnaire on the fourth postoperative day. The questionnaire included given alternatives and visual analogue scales (0,100 mm) for the pain assessment. Result., The patients' postoperative pain experience after hip replacement surgery was in average low, 33·1 mm on a 100 mm visual analogue scale. Patient's pain experience was reported to be highest on the first postoperative day for most of the patients. The preoperative pain experience tends to be higher than the postoperative pain experience. Older patients reported less average pain level postoperatively. Satisfaction with pain management was high. Conclusion., The pain experience tends to be higher preoperatively than postoperatively. Patients who reported a higher pain experience postoperatively reported that their pain experience was significant higher than preoperative expected. Relevance to practice., It is important for the postoperative outcome measure that the patients have a realistic expectation of pain experiences after total hip arthroplasty. The nurse is one of the staff members responsible for information to the individual patient. [source]


Pain and Substance-Related Pain-Reduction Behaviors among Opioid Dependent Individuals Seeking Methadone Maintenance Treatment

THE AMERICAN JOURNAL ON ADDICTIONS, Issue 2 2009
Declan T. Barry PhD
We surveyed 293 opioid dependent individuals seeking methadone maintenance treatment about their pain experiences and their substance-related pain reduction behaviors. Among the 213 respondents reporting recent pain of at least moderate typical pain intensity, two-thirds had a lifetime history of chronic pain. In comparison to those without a lifetime history of chronic pain, those with a lifetime history were older, reported higher pain frequency, were more likely to endorse accident or surgery and less likely to endorse "don't know" as the genesis of their recent pain, and endorsed comparable levels of substance-related pain reduction behaviors. These findings may have implications for resource and program planning in MMT programs. [source]