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Introduction: Chronic traumatic neck pain has a high prevalence of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). However, whether PTSS moderates treatment effects is unknown. This study investigated: 1) whether PTSS was associated with patient-reported outcomes and clinical test results at baseline; 2) whether PTSS moderated the effect of a multimodal physiotherapy intervention of exercise therapy and patient education; and 3) whether adherence to the intervention differed across PTSS groups., Methods: Secondary data analysis from a randomized controlled trial on chronic neck pain with 12-month follow-up was conducted. Patients were divided into three groups (NT = non-traumatic, LT = traumatic low PTSS, HT = traumatic high PTSS) based on self-reported onset of pain and the Impact of Event Scale. The baseline data were used to analyze the association of PTSS with patient demographics and scores of physical and mental health-related quality of life, depression, neck-related disability, kinesiophobia, and clinical tests. Baseline, 4-month and 12-month follow-up data were analyzed to investigate possible moderating effects on outcomes. Data on adherence were collected at four months., Results: 115 participants were included (NT n = 45; LT n = 46; HT n = 24). The HT group reported lower mental health scores and more depressive symptoms at baseline. PTSS did not significantly moderate the treatment effect on any outcomes. The HT group tended to have lower adherence to the multimodal physiotherapy intervention than the LT group., Conclusion: For patients with traumatic neck pain, high levels of PTSS are associated with poorer psychological outcomes but do not affect the outcomes of multimodal physiotherapy intervention.

Objective: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has long been debated with a recent focus on the consequences of having two different diagnostic descriptions of PTSD (i.e., the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fifth Edition [DSM-5] and the International Classification of Diseases-11th Edition [ICD-11]). Research has modeled PTSD as a network of interacting symptoms according to both diagnostic systems, but the relations between the two systems remain unclear regarding which symptoms are more central or interconnected. To answer this question, the present study is the first study to investigate the combined network structure of PTSD symptoms according to both systems using validated measurements (i.e., the International Trauma Questionnaire [ITQ] and the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist 5 [PCL-5] across two distinct trauma samples [a community sample, N = 2,367], and a military sample, N = 657)., Method: We estimated two Gaussian Graphical Models of the combined ICD-11 and DSM -5 PTSD symptoms across the two samples., Results: Five of the six most central symptoms were the same across both samples., Conclusions: The results underline that a combination of five symptoms representing both diagnostic systems may hold central positions and potentially be important for treatment. However, the implications depend on if the different diagnostic descriptions can be reconciled in an indexical rather than constitutive perspective. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives: Little is known about how the individual PTSD symptom clusters relate to intensity and interference of pain and whether these relationships differ across clinical groups. The present study examines relations between PTSD symptom clusters and pain in three trauma-exposed, unique clinical groups: 1) adults seeking treatment for chronic pain with current symptoms of PTSD, 2) trauma affected refugees seeking treatment for PTSD and chronic pain; and 3) individuals identified at admission to the emergency ward after whiplash injury., Methods: Network analysis was used to assess unique relations between pain intensity, pain interference, re-experiencing, avoidance, numbing, hyperarousal, depression, and anxiety separately in each sample. Links between PTSD clusters and pain were then compared within and between samples., Results: No within-group differences were identified for the links between pain and any of PTSD clusters in the chronic pain and refugee groups. In the whiplash group, hyperarousal was more strongly related to pain than re-experiencing, avoidance, and numbing. Between group comparisons revealed a more pronounced relationship between hyperarousal and pain in the whiplash group, with no between-group differences between the chronic pain and refugee groups., Conclusions: The findings suggest that when depression and anxiety are accounted for, few unique associations are found between pain and the PTSD symptom clusters in trauma-exposed samples with pain, with the exception of a link between pain and hyperarousal in individuals with whiplash-related PTSD symptoms., (© 2023 the author(s), published by De Gruyter, Berlin/Boston.)

Background: Validation of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) screening tools across various populations to ensure accurate PTSD estimates is important. Because of the high symptom overlap between PTSD and pain, it is particularly important to validate PTSD screening tools in trauma-exposed chronic pain patients. Objective: The present study is the first seeking to validate the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) in a sample of trauma-exposed, treatment-seeking chronic pain patients. Method: The validation and optimal scoring of the PCL-5 were investigated using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 (CAPS-5) in chronic pain patients exposed to traffic or work-related traumas ( n  = 84). Construct validity was investigated using confirmatory factor analyses testing six competing DSM-5 models in a sample of mixed trauma-exposed chronic pain patients ( n  = 566), and a subsample of chronic pain patients exposed to traffic or work-related trauma only ( n  = 202). Furthermore, concurrent validity and discriminant validity were investigated using correlation analysis. Results: The results showed moderate ( κ  = .46) diagnostic consistency between the PCL-5 and the CAPS-5 using the DSM-5 symptom cluster criteria, and the overall accuracy of the scale (area under the curve = .79) was highly acceptable. Furthermore, the Danish PCL-5 showed excellent construct validity both in the full sample and in the subsample of traffic and work-related accidents, with superior fit of the seven-factor hybrid model. Excellent concurrent validity and discriminant validity were also established in the full sample. Conclusion: The PCL-5 appears to have satisfactory psychometric properties in trauma-exposed, treatment-seeking chronic pain patients.

Abstract: Many people with chronic whiplash-associated disorders (WAD) have also symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but this is rarely considered in usual predominantly exercise-based interventions. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of combined trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) and exercise compared with supportive therapy (ST) and exercise for people with chronic WAD and PTSD. A randomised controlled multicentre trial with concealed allocation, assessor blinding, and blinded analysis was conducted. One hundred three participants with chronic WAD (>3 months and <5 years, grade II) and PTSD were randomised to TF-CBT and exercise (n = 53) or ST and exercise (n = 50). Both interventions comprised 10 weeks of TF-CBT or ST, followed by 6 weeks of exercise. Outcomes were measured at baseline, 10, 16 weeks, 6, and 12 months after randomisation. Analysis was intention to treat using linear mixed models. There was no difference between the interventions on the primary outcome of neck pain-related disability at any time point. At 16 weeks, the treatment effect on the 0 to 100 Neck Disability Index was 0.59 (95% confidence interval [CI] 5.51 to -4.33), at 6 months 1.18 (95% CI 6.15 to -3.78), and at 12 months 1.85 (95% CI 6.81 to -3.11). In addition, there was no difference between the interventions for most secondary outcomes at any time. Exceptions were in favour of TF-CBT and exercise, where improvements in PTSD symptoms were found at 16 weeks. From 16 weeks onwards, both groups achieved a clinically important improvement in neck pain-related disability. However, both groups remained moderately disabled., (Copyright © 2020 International Association for the Study of Pain.)

Background: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms are common in chronic Whiplash associated disorders (WAD) and have been found to be associated with higher levels of pain and disability. Theoretical frameworks have suggested that PTSD and pain not only coexist, but also mutually maintain one another. Although the comorbidity has been subject to increasing quantitative research, patients' experiences of the comorbidity and symptom interaction remain largely uninvestigated using qualitative methods., Objective: The present study set out to explore the potential relationship of PTSD and pain in people with WAD and properly assessed PTSD after motor vehicle accidents., Methods: A qualitative explorative study of eight individual face-to-face semistructured interviews were conducted. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim and analyzed using framework analysis., Results: Through the analysis, we developed three overarching themes. The first theme illustrated the complex and burdensome comorbidity with overlapping and transdiagnostic symptoms, whereas the second theme highlighted how several circumstances, some related to the health care system, could extend and amplify the traumatic response. The final theme illustrated symptom associations and interactions, particularly between pain and PTSD, both supporting and rejecting parts of the mutual maintenance framework., Conclusions: These findings underlined the great complexity and variability of the comorbidity and the traumatic event, but also emphasized how experiences of psyche and soma seem closely connected in these patients. The results provide support for the importance of thorough assessment by multidisciplinary teams, minimizing distress post-injury, and a critical approach to the idea of mutual maintenance between pain and PTSD., (© 2020 American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Study Design: Systematic review., Objectives: To identify, critically appraise, and synthesize research findings on the associations between acceptance, quality of life (QOL), and mental health outcomes in individuals living with spinal cord injury (SCI)., Methods: Five databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus) were systematically searched. Studies were included if they provided findings on the association between acceptance and QOL, mental health outcomes, or both in an SCI population aged 16 years or older. Only peer-reviewed original quantitative and qualitative studies were included. Screening, quality assessment, and data extraction were conducted independently by two researchers. Findings were tabulated and synthesized by outcome., Results: Forty-one studies were included. Greater acceptance was consistently associated with greater global and psychological QOL, life satisfaction, sense of well-being, mental health, and with lower levels of depression and anxiety. Inconsistent evidence was found with regards to social QOL and post-traumatic stress disorder. Acceptance was generally not associated with adjustment outcomes further than 2 years into the future. Study quality of the quantitative studies was mostly fair (n = 17) followed by good (n = 13), and poor (n = 9)., Conclusion: Health-care professionals may regard acceptance as a psychological resource they can aim to support in improving QOL and mental health following SCI. A range of methodological and conceptual limitations were present in the research. Future studies should prioritize longitudinal designs, consider dyadic effects, explore subjective meaning(s) of acceptance, and investigate the effectiveness of therapeutic approaches that stimulate the acceptance process.

Background: Research has almost exclusively focused on the neck in order to explain the mechanisms of persistent pain after motor vehicle collisions (MVC). However, studies have shown that low back pain after MVC is as common as neck pain. Also, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common after MVCs, and evidence indicate that PTSD may be linked to the development of pain and disability. PTSD has even been proposed as "the missing link" for some in the development of chronic low back pain. Unfortunately, PTSD often goes unattended in low back pain rehabilitation and very few randomized controlled studies exists targeting both conditions. Hence, the aim of the present study is to investigate the potential additional effect of the trauma therapy "Somatic Experiencing®" (SE) in addition to physiotherapy (PT) compared to PT alone for patients with chronic low back pain and comorbid PTSD., Methods: The study is a two-group randomized controlled clinical trial in which participants (n = 140) are recruited consecutively from a large Danish spine center in the Region of Southern Denmark, between January 2016 and December 2017. Patients are randomly allocated to one of the two conditions: SE + PT or PT alone. Measurements of effect are carried out at baseline before randomization, post-intervention, 6 and 12 months post-randomization. The primary outcome is a 20% reduction in disability (Rolland Morris Disability Questionnaire) at 6 months post-randomization. Secondary outcomes are: PTSD symptoms, pain intensity, pain-catastrophizing, fear of movement, anxiety and depression., Discussion: Comorbid PTSD is currently not targeted in back pain rehabilitation although highly prevalent. If the SE intervention shows to have an additional effect on disability and pain, the study is likely to have a positive impact on the management of chronic low back pain and will have immediate clinical applicability., Trial Registration: Current Controlled Trials Registration August 4, 2017: NCT03244046 . Retrospectively registered.

After traumatic exposure, individuals are at risk of developing symptoms of both pain and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Theory and research suggest a complex and potentially mutually maintaining relationship between these symptomatologies. However, findings are inconsistent and the applied methods are not always well suited for testing mutual maintenance. Cross-lagged designs can provide valuable insights into such temporal associations, but there is a need for a systematic review to assist clinicians and researchers in understanding the nature of the relationship. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to identify, critically appraise, and synthesize results from cross-lagged studies on pain and PTSD symptomatology to assess the evidence for longitudinal reciprocity and potential mediators. Systematic searches resulted in 7 eligible studies that were deemed of acceptable quality with moderate risk of bias using the cohort study checklist from Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network. Furthermore, synthesis of significant pathways in the cross-lagged models showed inconsistent evidence of both bidirectional and unidirectional interaction patterns between pain and PTSD symptomatology across time, hence not uniformly supporting the theoretical framework of mutual maintenance. In addition, the synthesis suggested that hyperarousal and intrusion symptoms may be of particular importance in these cross-lagged relationships, while there was inconclusive evidence of catastrophizing as a mediator. In conclusion, the findings suggest an entangled, but not necessarily mutually maintaining relationship between pain and PTSD symptomatology. However, major variations in findings and methodologies complicated synthesis, prompting careful interpretation and heightening the likelihood that future high-quality studies will change these conclusions.

The present study assesses the possible disruption effect of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) with regard to the protective role of attachment on pain, among ex-POWs. While secure attachment seems to serve as a buffer, decreasing the perception of pain, this function may be disrupted by PTSS. The study sample included 104 subjects who were combat veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur War comprising of 60 male ex-prisoners of war (ex-POWs) and 44 comparable male combat veterans. Both attachment and pain were investigated experimentally in the laboratory and via questionnaires. We found that ex-POWs showed higher levels of clinical pain and attachment insecurities compared to controls. Moreover, attachment avoidance and soothing effect of attachment (SEA) were both associated with lower levels of clinical pain. Most importantly, PTSS moderated the associations between attachment and pain, as well as the mediation role of attachment between captivity and pain. The results imply that although attachment can be an important resource for coping with pain, it can be severely disrupted by PTSS among trauma survivors., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)