RELATION OF COGNITIVE COPING AND CATASTROPHIZING TO ACUTE PAIN AND ANALGESIC USE FOLLOWING BREAST-CANCER SURGERY

This study investigated the relation of cognitive coping and catastrop hizing to acute postoperative pain and analgesic use. Fifty-nine women who had just undergone breast cancer surgery rated their pain on 3 co nsecutive days and completed a self-report measure of cognitive coping and catastrophizing prior to hospital discharge. Analgesic use over t he S-day period was tabulated from pharmacy records. Based on prior re search, it was hypothesized that increased catastrophizing and decreas ed use of cognitive coping strategies would be associated with greater pain and analgesic use. Results partially confirmed these hypotheses. Catastrophizing, but not cognitive coping, was associated with indivi dual differences in pain intensity and analgesic use. Additional analy ses indicated that age was a significant predictor of both catastrophi zing and postoperative pain. Specifically, younger patients were more likely to catastrophize and to report increased postoperative pain. Th eoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed.