CHRONIC PAIN DYSAESTHESIAE IN SPINAL-CORD INJURY PATIENTS - RESULTS OF A MULTICENTER STUDY/

The aim of the multicentre study entitled 'Description and Documentat ion of Painful States in Spinal Cord Injury Patients', in addition to the description and documentation of chronic pain and stressful dysaes thesiae in SCI patients, was the search for correlations between these symptoms and medical and psychosocial variables. To this end, the sam ple was selected to be as representative as possible. All patients ref erred for in-patient or out-patient treatment at the centres taking pa rt were enrolled in the study in order of presentation, providing they gave consent and met the inclusion criteria. Psychosocial, medical an d demographic data were elicited by a standardized battery of question s and a standardized physical examination, as were any chronic pain/dy saesthesiae (P/D) present in any localization. Among 901 patients, 34% had no chronic pain or dysaesthesiae, 50% had pain only, 11% had pain ful dysaesthesiae and 5%, non-painful but chronic and distressing dysa esthesiae. The intensity of P/D was noted as seven or more on a 10 cm visual analogue scale by 61% of the patients affected and was experien ced as rather or very distressing in 75% of cases. Most (86%) P/D were located below the spinal lesion or in the transition zone. There were significant correlations between the presence of P/D and age on quest ioning and at onset of the paraplegia/tetraplegia, problems with recta l paralysis, expectations of life as a paraplegic/tetraplegic, and sub jective assessment of changes in working life, Highly significant corr elations were found with subjective distress resulting of paraplegia/t etraplegia as such, depressed mood and psychosomatic disturbances of w ellbeing. Overall, among the selected variables of our study, we found that correlations between P/D and psychosocial variables were more fr equent and closer than those between P/D and medical variables.