Psychosocial predictors of paediatric chronic pain
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Psychosocial predictors of paediatric chronic pain
IRAS ID
191155
Contact name
Nuno Ferreira
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 30 days
Research summary
Approximately fifteen to thirty percent of young people experience chronic pain. Recent research has shown that young individuals can develop disabilities and low quality of life in relation to their health condition, regardless of the level of pain they experience. Children and adolescents with fears of movement and pain catastrophizing, such as the tendency to exaggerate, ruminate and feel hopeless about one’s own pain, seem to present with more physical, social and psychological difficulties above and beyond the level of pain they feel. Parental coping strategies and psychological wellbeing have so far been investigated little. Some recent evidence has shown that pain acceptance tends to protect individuals with chronic pain from the impoverishment of their social, physical and psychological functioning. The present study will investigate how child pain acceptance, catastrophizing, fear of movement, parental coping strategies and wellbeing can help young people with chronic pain to maintain their social and physical functioning.
A one-year cross-sectional quantitative designed project, funded by the Welcome Trust, will be conducted. One hundred and sixty 10-18 year old outpatients from NHS clinics experiencing chronic pain and one of their parents/guardians will take part in the study. Clinical teams in paediatric chronic pain services and specialist clinics of three NHS health boards in Scotland will identify potential participants, considering the inclusion criteria of the study. Researchers will send/give in person consent forms and questionnaires constituted by validated measures on the variables of interest to consenting participants. Consent forms and questionnaires for parents and young people will be clearly marked and asked to be returned by post or in person. This multi-site investigation will provide empirical evidence for an exhaustive model on chronic pain in young people, showing the respective role of individual and social variables in improving young individuals’ quality of life.REC name
South East Scotland REC 01
REC reference
16/SS/0060
Date of REC Opinion
22 Mar 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion