Citation
de la Vega, Rocío; Groenewald, Cornelius; Bromberg, Maggie H.; Beals-Erickson, Sarah E.; Rosenbloom, B.; & Palermo, Tonya M. (2017). Chronic pain prevalence and associated factors in adolescents with physical disabilities. 36th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Pain Society. Pittsburg, PA: The Journal of Pain.Abstract
Adolescents with physical disabilities (i.e. difficulty carrying out activities of independent living due to gross- or fine-motor skill deficits, altered muscle tone, paralysis, or inability to use limbs) may be at increased risk for chronic pain. However, little is known about the prevalence and associated risk factors of chronic pain in adolescents with physical disabilities. Therefore, the primary aims of this study were to 1) determine the prevalence of chronic pain, and 2) identify factors associated with chronic pain among adolescents with physical disabilities in the United States. We hypothesized that: 1) adolescents with physical disabilities would report high rates of chronic pain, and 2) chronic pain status would be associated with anxiety and depressive symptoms, insomnia, older age, and female sex. We conducted secondary analysis of nationally representative data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Participants with chronic pain were identified by self-reported daily or almost daily pain during the past year. Multivariate logistic regression analysis controlling for sociodemographics, anxiety, depression, and insomnia were used to identify factors associated with chronic pain. In the sample of 18,924 adolescents (12-19 years), 989 (4.3%) reported physical disabilities (Mage=16 years, 51.2% male). Adolescents with physical disabilities had a significantly higher rate of pain (27.2%) as compared to adolescents without physical disabilities (15.6%, Chi2=86.3550 p<0.001). The most common type of pain among adolescents with physical disabilities was musculoskeletal (16.5%), followed by headaches (12.2%) and stomachaches (6.4%). Among adolescents with physical disabilities, chronic pain was associated with increased anxiety symptoms (OR=1.3, 95% CI: 1.19-1.52) and higher rates of insomnia (OR=2.3, 95% CI: 1.18-4.6), however not with depressive symptoms, age, sex, or race. In conclusion, adolescents with physical disabilities experience chronic pain at a significantly higher rate than peers tailored pain interventions should be developed for this unique adolescent population.URL
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2017.02.161Reference Type
Conference proceedingBook Title
36th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Pain SocietyAuthor(s)
de la Vega, RocíoGroenewald, Cornelius
Bromberg, Maggie H.
Beals-Erickson, Sarah E.
Rosenbloom, B.
Palermo, Tonya M.