THURSDAY, Aug. 26 (HealthDay News) -- The quality of pain, not
its intensity, should be a key assessment tool for doctors, a new
study on carpal tunnel syndrome contends.
The study included 100 patients with carpal tunnel syndrome who
were in a clinical trial comparing a 5 percent lidocaine patch to
500 milligrams of naproxen. The patients' sleep quality was
assessed and they completed a Brief Pain Inventory questionnaire.
Carpal tunnel sydrome is a swelling inside a narrow "tunnel" formed
by bone and ligament in the wrist, usually as a result of
repetitive motions.
The goal of the study was to examine how pain quality, not pain
intensity, is associated with how pain interferes with normal
function.
The University of Washington team found that specific pain
qualities (sharp, sensitive, deep, surface, etc.) were associated
with changes in patient functioning over and above pain intensity
and other measures. Itching and throbbing were the pain qualities
most strongly associated with impaired function and sleep
disruption.
The findings highlights the importance of assessing pain quality
when doctors are conducting pain assessments on patients with
carpal tunnel syndrome.
"Pain is much more than just intensity and unpleasantness. Knowledge of pain quality, as well as pain intensity, provides additional clues for understanding the impact of pain on a person's life," study author Mark P. Jensen said in an American Pain Society news release.
The study appears in the current issue of the
Journal of Pain.
More information
The American Academy of Family Physicians has more about
carpal tunnel syndrome.