Fj. Keefe et al., PAIN IN ARTHRITIS AND MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS - THE ROLE OF COPING SKILLS TRAINING AND EXERCISE INTERVENTIONS, The Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapy, 24(4), 1996, pp. 279-290
There is growing recognition of the limitations of conventional, biome
dical approaches to the management of pain in individuals having arthr
itis and musculoskeletal disorders. This article provides an overview
of newly developed biopsychosocial approaches to the management of pai
n in this population. The presentation is divided into three sections.
In the first section, a biopsychosocial model of pain is presented. T
his model highlights the role that biological factors (eg., disease se
verity, comorbid conditions), cognitive-behavioral factors leg., thoug
hts, emotions, and behaviors), and environmental factors (eg., spouse
or family responses to pain behavior) can play in influencing the pain
experience. in the second section, we provide an overview of two newl
y developed treatment protocols based on the biopsychosocial model of
pain: a pain coping skills training protocol and an exercise training
protocol. Practical aspects of implementing these protocols are illust
rated by highlighting how they are applied in the management of patien
ts having persistent osteoarthritic pain. In the final section of the
article, we pinpoint several important future directions for research
in this area. Future studies need to explore the utility of combining
pain coping skills and exercise training protocols. In addition, there
is a need to identify variables that predict patients' response to bi
opsychosocial treatments.