Abstract
Objectives
Objectively measuring pain sensitivity has not been easy in primary care clinics. A sphygmomanometer test (a sensory test that measures an individual’s nociceptive response to pressure using a standard blood pressure cuff) has recently been established to test pain sensitivity. Here, we examined the feasibility of using the sphygmomanometer test with chronic pain patients.
Design
Population, observational study.
Settings
A community hospital multidisciplinary Pain Center and a private nonprofit university.
Subjects
Healthy controls and chronic pain patients were recruited.
Methods
All subjects underwent four pain sensitivity tests: a pressure algometer test, a cold pressure test, a heat sensitivity test, and a sphygmomanometer test. Participants then completed four established surveys for evaluating depression (Patient Health Questionnaire–9), anxiety (General Anxiety Disorder–7), fatigue (Fatigue Severity Scale), and pain catastrophizing (Pain Catastrophizing Scale).
Results
Although pain patients had significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety, fatigue, and pain catastrophizing, as well as reported pain scores, no significant differences in pain sensitivity were detected via any of the pain sensitivity tests. In the control but not the patient group, results from all pain sensitivity tests including the sphygmomanometer test were significantly correlated with each other. Unlike other pain sensitivity tests, the sphygmomanometer test did not correlate with measures of depression, anxiety, fatigue, or pain catastrophizing characteristics.
Conclusions
Our results indicate the unique characteristics of the sphygmomanometer test as a pain sensitivity test, particularly when utilized for individuals with chronic pain. Multiple pain sensitivity tests that assess various sensory modalities are needed to evaluate pain sensitivities in chronic pain patients.
Chronic Pain Patients’ Gaze Patterns toward Pain-Related Information: Comparison between Pictorial and Linguistic Stimuli