Perception vs pain and beliefs about pain control and Type A behavior pattern in patients with chronic ischemia of lower extremities or with rheumatoid arthritis

Monika Kadłubowska; Ewelina Bąk; Czesław Marcisz; Maria Kózka; Anna Michalik; Jolanta Kolonko; Bożena Krawczyk; Dorota Dobrzyń-Matusiak; Zofia Kapusta-Nowak

doi:10.2147/JPR.S182703

Perception vs pain and beliefs about pain control and Type A behavior pattern in patients with chronic ischemia of lower extremities or with rheumatoid arthritis

J Pain Res. 2018 Nov 29:11:3051-3059. doi: 10.2147/JPR.S182703. eCollection 2018.

Authors

Monika Kadłubowska¹, Ewelina Bąk¹, Czesław Marcisz², Maria Kózka³, Anna Michalik¹, Jolanta Kolonko¹, Bożena Krawczyk¹, Dorota Dobrzyń-Matusiak⁴, Zofia Kapusta-Nowak⁵

Affiliations

¹ University of Bielsko-Biała, Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Bielsko-Biała, Poland, ewelina.bak76@wp.pl.
² Medical University of Silesia, Department of Gerontology and Geriatric Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Katowice, Poland.
³ Jagiellonian University Medical College, Department of Clinical Nursing, Institute of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Health Sciences, Cracow, Poland.
⁴ Medical University of Silesia, Department of Nursing Propaedeutics, School of Health Sciences, Katowice, Poland.
⁵ Medical University of Silesia, Department of Health Promotion and Community Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Katowice, Poland.

Abstract

Objective: The study aimed at determining the experience of pain taking into consideration beliefs about pain control, Type A behavior pattern and sociodemographic factors in patients with chronic ischemia of the lower extremities or with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: The study enrolled 100 patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and 100 patients with RA. The subjective sensation of pain was assessed using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS); beliefs about pain control were analyzed using the Beliefs about Pain Control Questionnaire (BPCQ), taking into consideration internal factors, the influence of physicians and accidental events (chance); and Type A behavior features (haste and competition) were analyzed using the Framingham Type A Scale. The multiple regression model was used to assess associations between the experienced pain and the BPCQ value, the Framingham Type A Scale and sociodemographic factors.

Results: The pain intensity degree was found to be comparable in patients with PAD and with RA. The median determined using the VAS was 5.75 in both of the studied groups. In patients with PAD, lower VAS values were associated with the BPCQ - internal factors (P<0.05) whereas a higher VAS value was related to the BPCQ - physicians' influence (P<0.001). In patients with RA, a higher VAS value was associated with BPCQ - physicians' influence (P<0.05), disease duration (P<0.05) and smoking cigarettes (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Experiencing pain by patients with chronic ischemia of the lower extremities occurs at a moderate level and is beneficially connected with the internal factors and adversely connected with the external factors of beliefs about pain control. Patients with RA reported pain ailments of a moderate level in connection with the adverse influence of the external factors of beliefs about pain control, the duration of the disease and smoking cigarettes. Experiencing pain by patients with chronic ischemia of the lower extremities and RA does not seem to be related to Type A behavior.

Keywords: atherosclerosis; discomfort; inflammatory process; patients’ beliefs about pain control; temperament.