Elucidating factors contributing to disparities in pain-related experiences among adults with or at risk for knee osteoarthritis.

Background and purpose: We and others have reported ethnic/race group differences in clinical pain, physical function, and experimental pain sensitivity. However, recent research indicates that with consideration for socioenvironmental factors, ethnicity/race differences become less or non-significant. Understanding of factors contributing to pain inequities are needed. Guided by the NIA and NIMHD Health Disparities Research Frameworks, we evaluate the contributions of environmental and behavioral factors on previously reported ethnic/race group differences in: (1) clinical pain, (2) physical function, and (3) experimental pain in individuals with knee pain. Methods: Baseline data from Understanding of Pain and Limitations in Osteoarthritis Disease (UPLOAD) and UPLOAD-2 studies were analyzed. Participants were adults 45 to 85 years old who self-reported as non-Hispanic white (NHW) or black (NHB) with knee pain. A health assessment and quantitative sensory testing were completed. Sociodemographics, environmental, health, clinical and experimental pain, and physical functioning measures were included in nested regressions. Results: Pooled data from 468 individuals, 57 ± 8 years of age, 63% women, and 53% NHB adults. As NHB adults were younger and reported greater socioenvironmental risk than the NHW adults, the term sociodemographic groups is used. With inclusion of recognized environmental and behavioral variables, sociodemographic groups remained a significant predictor accounting for <5% of the variance in clinical pain and physical function and <10% of variance in experimental pain. Conclusion: The incorporation of environmental and behavioral factors reduced relationships between sociodemographic groups and pain-related outcomes. Pain sites, BMI, and income were significant predictors across multiple models. The current study adds to a body of research on the complex array of factors contributing to disparities in pain-related outcomes.

Pain and Menthol Use Are Related to Greater Nicotine Dependence Among Black Adults Who Smoke Cigarettes at Wave 5 (2018-2019) of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study.

Burdens related to pain, smoking/nicotine dependence, and pain-smoking comorbidity disproportionately impact Black Americans, and menthol cigarette use is overrepresented among Black adults who smoke cigarettes. Menthol may increase nicotine exposure, potentially conferring enhanced acute analgesia and driving greater dependence. Therefore, the goal of the current study was to examine associations between pain, menthol cigarette use, and nicotine dependence. Data was drawn from Black adults who were current cigarette smokers (n = 1370) at Wave 5 (2018-2019) of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study. Nicotine dependence was assessed using the Wisconsin Inventory of Smoking Dependence Motives. ANCOVA revealed that moderate/severe pain (vs. no/low pain) was associated with greater overall nicotine dependence (p < .001) and greater negative reinforcement, cognitive enhancement, and affiliative attachment smoking motives (ps < .001). Menthol smokers with moderate/severe pain also endorsed greater cigarette craving and tolerance, compared to non-menthol smokers with no/low pain (ps < .05). Findings support the notion that among Black individuals who smoke cigarettes, the presence of moderate/severe pain (vs. no/low pain) and menthol use may engender greater physical indices of nicotine dependence relative to non-menthol use. Compared to no/low pain, moderate/severe pain was associated with greater emotional attachment to smoking and greater proclivity to smoke for reducing negative affect and enhancing cognitive function. Clinical implications include the need to address the role of pain and menthol cigarette use in the assessment and treatment of nicotine dependence, particularly among Black adults. These data may help to inform evolving tobacco control policies aimed at regulating or banning menthol tobacco additives.

Pain catastrophizing: A patient-centered approach to assessment.

ABSTRACT: Pain is a subjective experience and its perception and expression vary widely. Pain catastrophizing, which refers to patients' thoughts or feelings about their pain, may impact their communication of pain and nurses' subsequent response. This article discusses how nurses can more readily recognize, assess, and manage pain catastrophizing.

Applying the NIA Health Disparities Research Framework to Identify Needs and Opportunities in Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Research.

Disparities in the experience of chronic musculoskeletal pain in the United States stem from a confluence of a broad array of factors. Organized within the National Institute on Aging Health Disparity Research Framework, a literature review was completed to evaluate what is known and what is needed to move chronic musculoskeletal pain research forward specific to disproportionately affected populations. Peer-reviewed studies published in English, on human adults, from 2000 to 2019, and conducted in the United States were extracted from PubMed and Web of Science. Articles were reviewed for key words that focused on underrepresented ethnic/race groups with chronic musculoskeletal pain applying health factor terms identified in the NIAHealth Disparity Research Framework four levels of analysis: 1) environmental, 2) sociocultural, 3) behavioral, and 4) biological. A total of 52 articles met inclusion criteria. There were limited publications specific to underrepresented ethnic/race groups with chronic musculoskeletal pain across all levels with particular research gaps under sociocultural and biological categories. Current limitations in evidence may be supplemented by a foundation of findings specific to the broader topic of "chronic pain" which provides guidance for future investigations. Study designs including a focus on protective factors and multiple levels of analyses would be particularly meritorious. PERSPECTIVE: Chronic musculoskeletal pain unequally burdens underrepresented ethnic/race groups. In order to move research forward and to systematically investigate the complex array of factors contributing toward health disparities, an organized approach is necessary. Applying the NIA Health Disparities Research Framework, an overview of the current state of evidence specific to chronic musculoskeletal pain and underrepresented ethnic/race groups is provided with future directions identified.

Patterns and Correlates of Self-Management Strategies for Osteoarthritis-Related Pain Among Older Non-Hispanic Black and Non-Hispanic White Adults.

OBJECTIVE: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a leading source of pain and disability among older adults. Self-management (SM) strategies are recommended to manage OA symptoms. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, along with other factors, may influence SM utilization rate. This study sought to examine the prevalence and correlates of SM use for pain among non-Hispanic Black patients (NHB) and non-Hispanic White patients (NHW) older adults with or at risk for knee OA. METHODS: A secondary data analysis was conducted on the Understanding Pain and Limitations in Osteoarthritic Disease multisite observational study, which included NHB (n = 104) and NHW (n = 98) community-dwelling older adults with or at risk for knee OA. Participants completed measures of sociodemographics, pain SM use, coping, and clinical and experimental pain. RESULTS: Clinical and experimental pain were significantly greater among NHBs compared to NHWs. There were no significant differences in use of total SM by ethnicity/race. Interestingly, multiple linear regression revealed that clinical and experimental pain indices, as well as coping, number of pain sites, age, and sex were differentially associated with total SM use between NHBs and NHWs. There were significant ethnicity/race by type of pain management interaction effects for pain measures. CONCLUSION: SM is common among older adults with or at risk for knee OA pain, and the prevalence of SM does not differ by ethnicity/race, but many guideline-recommended interventions for OA are underutilized. Importantly, different factors were associated with the use of SM, highlighting distinct biopsychosocial mechanisms contributing to SM use in NHBs and NHWs.

Race/Ethnicity Moderates the Association Between Psychosocial Resilience and Movement-Evoked Pain in Knee Osteoarthritis.

OBJECTIVE: Racial/ethnic disparities in pain are well-recognized, with non-Hispanic blacks (NHBs) experiencing greater pain severity and pain-related disability than non-Hispanic whites (NHWs). Although numerous risk factors are posited as contributors to these disparities, there is limited research addressing how resilience differentially influences pain and functioning across race/ethnicity. Therefore, this study examined associations between measures of psychosocial resilience, clinical pain, and functional performance among adults with knee osteoarthritis (OA), and assessed the moderating role of race/ethnicity on these relationships. METHODS: In a secondary analysis of the Understanding Pain and Limitations in Osteoarthritic Disease (UPLOAD-2) study, 201 individuals with knee OA (NHB = 105, NHW = 96) completed measures of resilience (ie, trait resilience, optimism, positive well-being, social support, positive affect) and clinical pain, as well as a performance-based measure assessing lower-extremity function and movement-evoked pain. RESULTS: Bivariate analyses showed that higher levels of psychosocial resilience were associated with lower clinical pain and disability and more optimal physical functioning. NHBs reported greater pain and disability, poorer lower-extremity function, and higher movement-evoked pain compared with NHWs; however, measures of psychosocial resilience were similar across race/ethnicity. In moderation analyses, higher optimism and positive well-being were protective against movement-evoked pain in NHBs, whereas higher levels of positive affect were associated with greater movement-evoked pain in NHWs. CONCLUSION: Our findings underscore the importance of psychosocial resilience on OA-related pain and function and highlight the influence of race/ethnicity on the resilience-pain relationship. Treatments aimed at targeting resilience may help mitigate racial/ethnic disparities in pain.