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Background Prior work suggests that people experiencing homelessness (PEH) are at heightened risk for developing pain and have a uniquely burdensome pain experience. Purpose The aim of this scoping review was to map the current peer-reviewed, published literature on the pain experience of PEH. Methods In accordance with the US Annual Homeless Assessment Report, we defined homelessness as lacking shelter or a fixed address within the last year. We conceptualized the pain experience via a modified version of the Social Communication Model of Pain, which considers patient, provider, and contextual factors. Published articles were identified with CINHAL, Embase, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases. Results Sixty-nine studies met inclusion criteria. Studies revealed that PEH have high rates of pain and experience high levels of pain intensity and interference. Substantially fewer studies examined other factors relevant to the pain experience, such as self-management, treatment-seeking behaviors, and pain management within healthcare settings. Nonetheless, initial evidence suggests that pain is undermanaged in PEH. Conclusions Future research directions to understand pain and homelessness are discussed, including factors contributing to the under-management of pain. This scoping review may inform future work to develop interventions to address the specific pain care needs of PEH.

Resilience and social support are important for emerging adults and especially those with chronic health conditions (CHC). We examined associations among resilience, social support, and health in those with and without a CHC. 132 emerging adults with a CHC and matched healthy participants completed questionnaires. Two-group, measuredvariable path analysis and mediational models were conducted. Those with a CHC had poorer resilience and health but equivalent social support. Resilience significantly predicted general health and emotional well-being. Resilience mediated the relationships between coping and health for healthy participants and between coping and emotional wellbeing in those with a CHC. Satisfaction with social support was significantly correlated with health, mediating the influence of network size on emotional well-being for those without a CHC and both physical functioning and emotional well-being for healthy participants. These results indicate the importance of resilience and social support for emerging adults, especially those with a CHC.

Although insomnia symptoms and chronic pain are associated, less is known about the temporal nature of the associations between these variables or the impact of internalizing symptoms on the associations. Concurrent and longitudinal associations were examined among insomnia symptoms, internalizing symptoms, and pain in youth with chronic pain in this retrospective analysis of clinical records. We hypothesized the following: (a) pain, insomnia symptoms, and internalizing symptoms would be significantly interrelated at all waves, (b) insomnia symptoms would more strongly predict future pain than the reverse, and (c) internalizing symptoms would mediate the longitudinal association between insomnia symptoms and pain.Youth (Pain and insomnia symptoms were positively correlated within each wave. We found bidirectional longitudinal associations between insomnia symptoms and pain.Overall, these data demonstrate a bidirectional relationship between insomnia symptoms and pain, as well as weak support for internalizing symptoms mediating the association between pain and insomnia symptoms. Treatment of youth with chronic pain should prioritize concurrent or early treatment of comorbid insomnia symptoms to maximize response to pain treatment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Many advanced cancer patients struggle with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and anger toward God and illness-related stressors. Patients may perceive their illness as an injustice (i.e., appraise their illness as unfair, severe, and irreparable or blame others for their illness), which may be a risk factor for poor psychological and spiritual outcomes. This study examined relations between cancer-related perceived injustice and psycho-spiritual outcomes as well as potential mediators of these relationships.Advanced lung (n = 102) and prostate (n = 99) cancer patients completed a one-time survey. Using path analyses, we examined a parallel mediation model including the direct effects of perceived injustice on psycho-spiritual outcomes (i.e., anxiety, depressive symptoms, anger about cancer, anger towards God) and the indirect effects of perceived injustice on psycho-spiritual outcomes through two parallel mediators: meaning making and acceptance of cancer. We then explored whether these relations differed by cancer type.Path analyses indicated that perceived injustice was directly and indirectly-through acceptance of cancer but not meaning making-associated with psycho-spiritual outcomes. Results did not differ between lung and prostate cancer patients.Advanced cancer patients with greater perceived injustice are at higher risk for poor psycho-spiritual outcomes. Acceptance of cancer, but not meaning making, explained relationships between cancer-related perceived injustice and psycho-spiritual outcomes. Findings support testing acceptance-based interventions to address perceived injustice in advanced cancer patients.

Dysmenorrhea is pelvic pain associated with menstruation and is one of the most common pain conditions among reproductive-age women. It is commonly treated with medications, complementary and alternative medicine, and self-management techniques. However, there is increased focus on psychological interventions which modify thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and behavioral responses to dysmenorrhea. This review examined the efficacy of psychological interventions on dysmenorrhea pain severity and interference. We conducted a systematic search of the literature using PsycINFO, PubMed, CINHAL, and Embase. A total of 22 studies were included; 21 examined within-group improvement (i.e., within-group analysis) and 14 examined between-group improvement (i.e., between-group analysis). Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted on pain severity and interference, with average effect sizes calculated using Hedges’s g. Within-group analyses showed decreased pain severity and interference at post-treatment (g = 0.986 and 0.949, respectively) and first follow-up (g = 1.239 and 0.842, respectively). Between-group analyses showed decreased pain severity at post-treatment (g = 0.909) and decreased pain severity and interference at first follow-up (g = 0.964 and 0.884, respectively) compared to control groups. This review supports the efficacy of psychological interventions for dysmenorrhea, but conclusions are tempered by suboptimal methodological quality of the included studies and high heterogeneity across studies. Additional, rigorous research is needed to determine the clinical utility of psychological interventions for dysmenorrhea.

Background People with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) not fully accounted for by traditional or HIV-specific risk factors. Successful management of HIV does not eliminate this excess risk. Thus, there is a need to identify novel risk factors for CVD among people with HIV (PWH). Purpose Our objective was to systematically review the literature on one such candidate CVD risk factor in PWH—depression. Methods A systematic literature search of PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Web of Science, and CINAHL was performed to identify published English-language studies examining associations of depression with clinical CVD, subclinical CVD, and biological mechanisms (immune activation, systemic inflammation, altered coagulation) among PWH between the earliest date and June 22, 2021. Results Thirty-five articles were included. For clinical CVD (k = 8), findings suggests that depression is consistently associated with an increased risk of incident CVD. For subclinical CVD (k = 5), one longitudinal analysis reported a positive association, and four cross-sectional analyses reported null associations. For immune activation (k = 13), systemic inflammation (k = 17), and altered coagulation (k = 5), findings were mixed, and there was considerable heterogeneity in sample characteristics and methodological quality across studies. Conclusions Depression may be an independent risk factor for CVD among PWH. Additional research is needed to confirm depression’s association with clinical CVD and to determine whether depression is consistently and meaningfully associated with subclinical CVD and biological mechanisms of CVD in HIV. We propose a research agenda for this emerging area.

Mechanisms explaining the relationship between pain-related injustice appraisals and functional outcomes in youth with chronic pain have yet to be examined. In studies of adults, greater pain-related injustice is associated with worse depressive symptoms and greater pain through greater anger. No study to date has examined anger expression as a mediator in the relationships between pain-related injustice appraisals and physical and psychosocial functioning in youth with chronic pain. The current sample consisted of 385 youth with varied pain conditions (75% female, 88% White, Mage=14.4 years) presenting to a university-affiliated pain clinic. Patients completed self-report measures assessing anger expression (anger-out and anger-in), pain-related injustice, pain intensity, functional disability, and emotional, social, and school functioning. Bootstrapped mediation analyses indicated that only anger-out (indirect effect= -.12, 95% CI: -.21, -.05) mediated the relationship between pain-related injustice and emotional functioning, whereas both anger-out (indirect effect= -.17, 95% CI: -.27, -.09) and anger-in (indirect effect= -.13, 95% CI: -.09, -.001) mediated the relationship between pain-related injustice and social functioning. Neither mode of anger expression mediated the relationship between pain-related injustice and pain intensity, functional disability, or school functioning. Collectively, these findings implicate anger as one mechanism by which pain-related injustice impacts psychosocial outcomes for youth with chronic pain. Perspective: Anger expression plays a mediating role in the relationship between pain-related injustice appraisals and psychosocial outcomes for youth with chronic pain. Anger represents one target for clinical care to decrease the deleterious impact of pain-related injustice on emotional and social functioning.

Objectives The current study investigated the role of maternal child- and self-oriented injustice appraisals about child pain in understanding maternal attention for child pain and adult anger cues and pain-attending behavior. Methods Forty-four children underwent a painful cold pressor task (CPT) while their mother observed. Eye tracking was used to measure maternal attention to child pain and adult anger cues. Initial attention allocation and attentional maintenance were indexed by probability of first fixation and gaze duration, respectively. Maternal pain-attending behaviors toward the child were videotaped and coded after CPT completion. Mothers also rated the intensity of pain and anger cues used in the free-viewing tasks. All analyses controlled for maternal catastrophizing about child pain. Results Neither child-oriented nor self-oriented injustice was associated with maternal attentional bias toward child pain. Regarding attention toward self-relevant anger cues, differential associations were observed for self- and child-oriented injustice appraisals, with maternal self-oriented injustice being associated with a greater probability of first fixating on anger and with higher anger ratings, whereas maternal child-oriented injustice was associated with enhanced attentional maintenance toward anger. Neither type of maternal injustice appraisals was associated with maternal pain-attending behavior, which was only associated with maternal catastrophizing. Conclusions The current study sheds light on potential differential mechanisms through which maternal self- vs. child-oriented injustice appraisals may exert their impact on parent and child pain-related outcomes. Theoretical implications and future directions are discussed.

The bidirectional relationship between pain and working memory (WM) deficits is well-documented but poorly understood. Pain catastrophizing—exaggerated, negative cognitive and emotional responses toward pain—may contribute to WM deficits by occupying finite, shared cognitive resources. The present study assessed the role of pain catastrophizing as both a state-level process and trait-level disposition in the link between acute pain and WM. Healthy, young adults were randomized to an experimentally-induced ischemic pain or control task, during which they completed verbal and non-verbal WM tests. Participants also completed measures of state- and trait-level pain catastrophizing. Simple mediation analyses indicated that participants in the pain group (vs. control) engaged in more state-level catastrophizing about pain, which led to worse verbal and non-verbal WM. Moderated mediation analyses indicated that the indirect (mediation) effect of state-level pain catastrophizing was moderated by trait-level pain catastrophizing for both verbal and non-verbal WM. Participants in the pain group who reported a greater trait-level tendency to catastrophize about pain experienced greater state-level catastrophizing about pain during the ischemic task, which led to worse verbal and non-verbal WM performance. These results provide evidence for pain catastrophizing as an important mechanism and moderating factor of WM deficits in acute pain. Future research should replicate these results in chronic pain samples, investigate other potential mechanisms (e.g., sleep disturbances), and determine if interventions that target pain catastrophizing directly can ameliorate cognitive deficits in people with pain. Perspective This article presents a laboratory study examining the relationships among pain, pain catastrophizing, and working memory in healthy participants. The results shed new light on these relationships and raise the possibility that interventions that reduce catastrophizing may lead to improved cognitive function among people with pain.

Little is known about the factors that influence providers' perceptions of patient risk for aberrant opioid use. Patient gender may interact with prior opioid misuse to influence these perceptions. We asked 131 physicians to view videos and vignettes for 8 virtual patients with chronic pain. Gender (male/female) and previous prescription opioid misuse (present/absent) varied across patients; the vignettes were otherwise balanced on demographic and clinical characteristics. For each patient, providers assessed four risk domains: opioid-related adverse events, opioid misuse/abuse, opioid addiction, and opioid diversion. Results indicated a significant gender-by-misuse interaction for risk of opioid misuse/abuse. When previous misuse behaviors were absent, providers rated men at higher risk; there was no gender difference when previous misuse behaviors were present. A significant gender-by-misuse interaction was found for risk of opioid-related adverse events. Providers perceived men to be higher risk when previous misuse behaviors were absent; there was no gender difference when previous misuse behaviors were present. A significant gender-by-misuse interaction was found for risk of opioid addiction. Providers rated women at higher risk when previous misuse behaviors were present, and men at higher risk when previous misuse behaviors were absent. There were significant main effects of gender and misuse for risk of opioid diversion. Providers rated men and those with previous misuse behaviors at higher risk. These results demonstrate that patient gender and previous opioid misuse have unique and interactive effects on provider perceptions of prescription opioid-related risks. Studies are needed to identify the mechanisms underlying these effects, such as gender-based stereotypes about risk-taking and drug abuse.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effect of patient immigrant status on physician trainees’ diabetes treatment decisions. METHODS: Participants were 140 physician trainees (‘providers’). Providers viewed videos and vignettes of virtual patients differing in immigrant status (born in Mexico or U.S.; other characteristics held constant). Analyses were completed at the group and individual levels. RESULTS: Providers were less likely to refer foreign-born (vs. U.S.-born) patients to endocrinology. Individual-level results showed an almost even split between treatment ratings for foreign-born vs. U.S.-born patients for three decisions (take no action, add oral hypoglycemic agent, add/switch to insulin), explaining why group-level differences for these ratings did not emerge (i.e., they were cancelled out). CONCLUSION: Physician trainees are less likely to refer foreign-born patients to endocrinology. Half of individual-level decisions were influenced by patient immigrant status, but group-level analyses mask these differences. Systematic treatment differences based on non-relevant factors could lead to adverse outcomes for immigrants.

Little is known about the pain experience of the Mexican American (MA) population. We investigated the associations between language use and generation status with chronic pain prevalence, health insurance coverage, and analgesic medication use. We examined 3373 MA respondents from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We found higher levels of English use and generation status were associated with higher odds of reporting chronic pain. For respondents reporting chronic pain, higher levels of English use and generation status were associated with higher odds of being covered by health insurance, lower odds of having a period of time last year without health insurance, and higher odds of being prescribed any analgesic medication, especially opioid medications. We found language use and generation status play a role in MAs’ experience, access, and treatment of chronic pain. Patient-, provider-, and systems-level interventions may be needed to reduce these disparities.

Background Generalized expectancies have been theorized to play key roles in pain-related outcomes, but the empirical findings have been mixed. Purpose The primary aim of this meta-analysis was to quantify the relationships between two of the most researched positive generalized expectancies (i.e., hope and optimism) and pain-related outcomes (i.e., pain severity, physical functioning, and psychological dysfunction) for those experiencing clinical pain. Methods A total of 96 studies and 31,780 participants with a broad array of pain diagnoses were included in analyses, using random-effects models. Results Both hope and optimism had negative correlations with pain severity (hope: r = –.168, p < .001; optimism: r = –.157, p < .001), positive correlations with physical functioning (hope: r = .199, p < .001; optimism: r = .175, p < .001), and negative correlations with psychological dysfunction (hope: r = –.349, p = .001; optimism: r = –.430, p Conclusion The current findings suggest that hope and optimism are similarly associated with adaptive pain-related outcomes. Future research should examine the efficacy of interventions on hope and optimism in ameliorating the experience of clinical pain.

Background: Research among adult and paediatric samples suggests that pain-related injustice appraisals contribute to adverse pain-related functioning. However, a singular focus on pain-related injustice appraisals carries the risk of underestimating the role of broader concepts of justice. This study examined the unique roles of child pain-related injustice appraisals and just-world beliefs in understanding disability and physical, emotional, social and academic functioning, as well as the mediating role of injustice appraisals in the relationship between just-world beliefs and functioning. Methods: Participants comprised a school sample of 2,174 children (Study 1) and a clinical sample of 146 paediatric chronic pain patients (Study 2) who completed the Injustice Experience Questionnaire (IEQ), Personal and General Belief in a Just World scales (JWB-P/G), Functional Disability Inventory (FDI), Pain Catastrophizing Scale for Children (PCS-C) and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PEDSQL). Results: For both samples, child pain-related injustice appraisals were associated with poorer functioning, after controlling for just-world beliefs, catastrophizing, pain intensity, age and sex. In the school sample, injustice appraisals mediated the associations of both personal and general just-world beliefs with functioning. In the clinical sample, injustice appraisals mediated the association of personal, but not general, just-world beliefs with all functioning scales. Conclusions: The current findings attest to the unique role of pain-related injustice appraisals in understanding child pain-related functioning and their explanatory value in understanding the relationship between fundamental just-world beliefs and child pain-related functioning. Significance: The present study adds to emerging literature on the adverse effects of child pain-related injustice appraisals in the context of pain, through showing that pain-related injustice appraisals are uniquely associated with pain-related functioning and mediate the relationship between just-world beliefs and pain-related functioning. These findings suggest that interventions may target pain-related injustice appraisals as a mechanism for change in children.

Purpose Undiagnosed diabetes disproportionately affects medically underserved groups. It is unknown whether being an immigrant confers additional risk for undiagnosed diabetes. The purpose of this study was to examine independent associations of immigrant status and race/ethnicity with the prevalence of diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes in a U.S.-based population sample. Methods Respondents were 21,306 adults from the 2011–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Immigrant status was coded as foreign-born or U.S.-born. Six racial/ethnic categories were white, Black, Mexican American, other Hispanic, Asian, and other/multiracial. Self-report and laboratory data yielded a three-level diabetes status outcome: no diabetes (88%), diagnosed diabetes (10%), and undiagnosed diabetes (2%). Results Adjusted multinomial logistic regression models evaluating immigrant status and race/ethnicity as simultaneous predictors revealed that foreign-born (vs. U.S.-born) adults had a similar prevalence of diagnosed diabetes (OR = 0.98, 95% CI: 0.79–1.22, P = .84) but a higher prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes (OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.21–1.97, P = .004). Models showed that all racial/ethnic minority groups except the other/multiracial group (vs. whites) had a higher prevalence of diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes (Ps Conclusions Immigrants and racial/ethnic minority adults have increased odds of undiagnosed diabetes, even after accounting for health insurance. These groups are likely at increased risk for diabetes complications because of prolonged periods of undetected diabetes.

The COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has changed the social environment in which people live and work, as well as the social systems they rely on.39,88 To contain the spread of coronavirus and to prepare for a dramatic increase in demand for limited hospital/medical facilities and resources, societies have enforced physical distancing measures. Consequently, there have been limitations on the use of public transportation, public spaces, and work, education, and recreational facilities. Furthermore, access to vital, but nonurgent, healthcare services (including pain management services) has been restricted. These changes have affected the way people connect with each other, manage their health and wellbeing, and fulfil their social roles. For some, these changes may present opportunities (eg, increased time with family, normalisation of flexible working, and reduced demand for travel). For others, however, these social changes can also represent significant threats to health and wellbeing. The negative impact of social changes prompted by the COVID-19 crisis may disproportionately affect individuals living with long-term painful conditions. Living with chronic pain can threaten an individuals' fundamental social needs for autonomy (agency or independence), belonging (social connection), and justice (fairness). In turn, for some, experiencing heightened social threat can maintain and exacerbate chronic pain.48 In this review, we draw attention to the potential for social and systemic changes associated with attempts to contain the spread of COVID-19 to precipitate, maintain, and exacerbate pain by increasing the social threats faced by individuals with chronic pain (Fig. ​(Fig.1).1). We also suggest strategies for mitigating the social impact of COVID-19 on those living with chronic pain, for instance by learning from the resilience demonstrated by people in pain who have found ways to deal with social threat. Finally, we suggest several time-critical, high-impact research questions for further investigation (Fig. 1). Open in a separate window Figure 1. Schematic representation of how the COVID 19 pandemic (A) exacerbates existing levels of social threat (B), thereby inducing several social challenges (C) for people with chronic pain, and ultimately increasing the risk for the development, maintenance, and exacerbation of chronic pain complaints (D). Possible protecting processes and interventions countering the effects of the pandemic are portrayed as well (E).

In response to the dual public health crises of chronic pain and opioid use, providers have become more vigilant about assessing patients for risk of opioid-related problems. Little is known about how providers are making these risk assessments. Given previous studies indicating that Black patients are at increased risk for suboptimal pain care, which may be related to stereotypes about drug abuse, the current study examined how patient race and previous opioid misuse behaviors impact providers' risk assessments for future prescription opioid-related problems. Physician residents and fellows (N = 135) viewed videos and read vignettes about 8 virtual patients with chronic pain who varied by race (Black/White) and history of prescription opioid misuse (absent/present). Providers rated patients' risk for future prescription opioid-related adverse events, misuse/abuse, addiction, and diversion, and also completed measures of implicit racial attitudes and explicit beliefs about race differences in pain. Two significant interactions emerged indicating that Black patients were perceived to be at greater risk for future adverse events (when previous misuse was absent) and diversion (when previous misuse was present). Significant main effects indicated that Black patients and patients with previous misuse were perceived to be at greater risk for future misuse/abuse of prescription opioids, and that patients with previous misuse were perceived to be at greater risk of addiction. These findings suggest that racial minorities and patients with a history of prescription opioid misuse are particularly vulnerable to any unintended consequences of efforts to stem the dual public health crises of chronic pain and opioid use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

BackgroundCompared to White and high socioeconomic status (SES) patients, Black and low SES patients receive less adequate pain care. Providers may contribute to these disparities by making biased decisions that are driven, in part, by their attitudes about race and SES.PurposeWe examined the effects of patient race and SES on providers’ chronic pain decisions and the extent to which providers’ implicit and explicit attitudes about race and SES were related to these decisions.MethodsPhysician residents/fellows (n = 436) made pain care decisions for 12 computer-simulated patients with chronic back pain that varied by race (Black/White) and SES (low/high). Physicians also completed measures assessing implicit and explicit attitudes about race and SES.ResultsThere were three significant race-by-SES interactions: (a) For high SES patients, Black (vs. White) patients were rated as having more pain interference; the opposite race difference emerged for low SES patients. (b) For high SES patients, Black (vs. White) patients were rated as being in greater distress; no race difference emerged for low SES patients. (c) For low SES patients, White (vs. Black) patients were more likely to be recommended workplace accommodations; no race difference emerged for high SES patients. Additionally, providers were more likely to recommend opioids to Black (vs. White) and low (vs. high) SES patients, and were more likely to use opioid contracts with low (vs. high) SES patients. Providers’ implicit and explicit attitudes predicted some, but not all, of their pain-related ratings.ConclusionThese results highlight the need to further examine the effects of patient race and SES simultaneously in the context of pain care.

Previous studies have documented that racial minorities and women receive poorer pain care than their demographic counterparts. Providers contribute to these disparities when their pain-related decision-making systematically varies across patient groups. Less is known about racial and gender disparities in children with pain or the extent to which providers contribute to these disparities. In a sample of 129 medical students (henceforth referred to as "providers"), Virtual Human methodology and a pain-related version of the Implicit Association Test (IAT) were used to examine the effects of patient race/gender on providers’ pain assessment/treatment decisions for pediatric chronic abdominal pain, as well as the moderating role of provider implicit pain-related race/gender attitudes. Findings indicated that providers rated Black patients as more distressed (mean difference [MD] = 2.33, P < .01, standard error [SE] = .71, 95% confidence interval [CI] = .92, 3.73) and as experiencing more pain-related interference (MD = 3.14, P < .01, SE = .76, 95% CI = 1.63, 4.64) compared to White patients. Providers were more likely to recommend opioids for Black patients than White patients (MD = 2.41, P < .01, SE = .58, 95% CI = 1.05, 3.76). Female patients were perceived to be more distressed by their pain (MD = 2.14, P < .01, SE = .79, 95% CI = .58, 3.70) than male patients, however there were no gender differences in treatment recommendations. IAT results indicated that providers held implicit attitudes that Black Americans (M = .19, standard deviation [SD] = .29) and males (M = .38, SD = .29) were more pain-tolerant than their demographic counterparts; however, these implicit attitudes did not significantly moderate their pain assessment/treatment decisions. Future studies are needed to elucidate specific paths through which the pain experience and care of children differ across racial and gender groups. PERSPECTIVE: Providers’ pain assessment (ie, pain distress/pain interference) and treatment (ie, opioids) of pediatric pain differs across patient race and to a lesser extent, patient gender. This study represents a critical step in research on pain-related disparities in pediatric pain.

Background Erosive tooth wear (ETW) is irreversible loss of dental hard tissue. The authors examined patients’ ability to recognize ETW relative to sound teeth and teeth with caries. Methods Using Amazon’s crowdsourcing service, the authors recruited participants (N = 623) to view standardized images of buccal surfaces of teeth (sound, ETW, or caries). Participants reported whether a dental condition existed (yes or no), likelihood to seek care, and esthetic attractiveness for teeth with no, initial, moderate, or severe signs of ETW or caries. Results Dental patients showed poor recognition of cases of ETW, especially compared with sound and caries-affected teeth at each level of severity. Patients were less likely to schedule a dental appointment for care or treatment of teeth with ETW than for teeth with caries at each level of severity. Patients also found ETW more esthetically attractive than caries at each level of severity and found initial ETW more attractive than sound teeth. Conclusions Dental patients struggle to recognize ETW, in general and compared with caries, at each level of severity and particularly for early stages of ETW. These recognition difficulties likely arise, in part, from tooth esthetic attractiveness standards (smooth and shiny teeth look more esthetic), possibly leading to lack of appropriate care-seeking behavior. Practical Implications This internet-based tool may be used to assess dental patients’ awareness and ability to recognize cases of ETW. Improved patient awareness might lead to seeking professional care to prevent or delay ETW progression.

Research has demonstrated racial disparities in pain care such that Black patients often receive poorer pain care than White patients. Little is known about mechanisms accounting for the emergence of such disparities. The present study had 2 aims. First, we examined whether White observers' attentional processing of pain (using a visual search task [VST] indexing attentional engagement to and attentional disengagement from pain) and estimation of pain experience differed between White vs Black faces. Second, we examined whether these differences were moderated by (1) racially biased beliefs about pain experience and (2) the level of pain expressed by Black vs White faces. Participants consisted of 102 observers (87 females) who performed a VST assessing pain-related attention to White vs Black avatar pain faces. Participants also reported on racially biased beliefs about White vs Black individuals' pain experience and rated the pain intensities expressed by White and Black avatar faces. Results indicated facilitated attentional engagement towards Black (vs White) pain faces. Furthermore, observers who more strongly endorsed the belief that White individuals experience pain more easily than Black individuals had less difficulty disengaging from Black (vs White) pain faces. Regarding pain estimations, observers gave higher pain ratings to Black (vs White) faces expressing high pain and White (vs Black) faces expressing no pain. The current findings attest to the importance of future research into the role of observer attentional processing of sufferers' pain in understanding racial disparities in pain care. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed, and future research directions are outlined.

Background and purpose: Despite the notable benefits of physical activity for chronic pain, a large proportion of patients with chronic pain report that they do not receive activity-related recommendations from their providers. Research suggests that patient factors such as weight and gender influence activity-related recommendations for chronic pain. Research also suggests that appraisals of the intensity and cause of pain may explain these weight and gender effects. We investigated the influence of patient weight and gender on observers' likelihood of recommending activity-related treatments for pain. We also explored the mediating effects of observers' ratings of pain severity and the extent to which pain was due to medical and lifestyle factors (pain attribution). Patients and methods: Healthy young adults (N=616; 76% female) viewed videos (Ghent Pain Videos of Daily Activities) and vignettes of 4 patients with chronic back pain performing a standardized functional task. Patients varied by gender (female, male) and weight (normal, obese), but were otherwise equivalent on demographic characteristics and pain behaviors. Participants rated how much pain they perceived the patients to be experiencing, the extent to which they attributed the pain to medical and lifestyle factors, and their likelihood of recommending exercise, physical therapy (PT), and rest. Results: Patient weight and gender significantly interacted to influence exercise, PT, and rest recommendations. Both pain intensity and pain attribution mediated the relationships between patient weight and activity recommendations; however, these mediation effects differed across gender and recommendation type. Conclusion: Patient weight and gender influenced laypeople's activity recommendations for chronic pain. Moreover, the results suggest that observers' perceptions of pain intensity and pain attributions are mechanisms underlying these effects. If these findings are replicated in providers, interventions may need to be developed to reduce provider biases and increase their recognition of the benefits of physical activity for chronic pain.

We conducted a randomized controlled trial of an individually tailored, virtual perspective-taking intervention to reduce race and socioeconomic status (SES) disparities in providers' pain treatment decisions. Physician residents and fellows (n = 436) were recruited from across the United States for this two-part online study. Providers first completed a bias assessment task in which they made treatment decisions for virtual patients with chronic pain who varied by race (black/white) and SES (low/high). Providers who demonstrated a treatment bias were randomized to the intervention or control group. The intervention consisted of personalized feedback about their bias, real-time dynamic interactions with virtual patients, and videos depicting how pain impacts the patients' lives. Treatment bias was re-assessed 1 week later. Compared with the control group, providers who received the tailored intervention had 85% lower odds of demonstrating a treatment bias against black patients and 76% lower odds of demonstrating a treatment bias against low SES patients at follow-up. Providers who received the intervention for racial bias also showed increased compassion for patients compared with providers in the control condition. Group differences did not emerge for provider comfort in treating patients. Results suggest an online intervention that is tailored to providers according to their individual treatment biases, delivers feedback about these biases, and provides opportunities for increased contact with black and low SES patients, can produce substantial changes in providers' treatment decisions, resulting in more equitable pain care. Future studies should examine how these effects translate to real-world patient care and the optimal timing/dose of the intervention.

Chronic pain is a leading cause of work absenteeism and disability compensation. Previous work demonstrates that patients with chronic illness often seek advice, such as whether or not to pursue disability benefits, from peers with similar health conditions. The current study examined the extent that social factors influence patients with chronic pain (“peers”) when making disability judgments and recommendations for other patients with chronic pain. Participants (N = 71) made pain-related and disability ratings for fictional vignette patients that varied in weight (normal vs obese), fault of accident, and physical work demands. Results of repeated measures analyses of variance indicated that participants rated patients with obesity, who were not at fault, and who held a physically demanding job as experiencing more severe pain symptoms and disability and were more likely to recommend they seek disability benefits. Participants who had applied for disability benefits themselves rated patients as more disabled than participants who had not applied for disability. These data suggest that patients with chronic pain are influenced by patient and contextual factors when making pain-related and disability judgments for peers. These judgments may impact patient decision making via peer support programs and online forums. Perspective This study suggests that patients with chronic pain are influenced by patient weight, fault of accident, and physical work demands when making judgments about pain and disability for peers. Future studies should examine the extent such peer-to-peer recommendations influence actual disability-seeking behaviors for pain.

Chronic pain is associated with profound negative effects, and racial disparities are well-documented in chronic pain treatment. In addition, Black patients report poorer communication with providers and exhibit lower levels of patient activation (self-management self-efficacy) than White patients. Although the causes of healthcare disparities are complex and require intervention at multiple levels, empowering patients is one critical path to achieving health equity. The current study is a coaching intervention focused on increasing patient activation and building communication skills for Black patients with chronic pain.In this randomized controlled trial, 250 Black patients with chronic pain were randomized to either the coaching intervention or an attention control arm. Intervention patients attended 6 telephone-delivered individual coaching sessions over 12 weeks. Coaching focused on clarifying and prioritizing goals and on communication skills, such as agenda setting. The primary outcome is patient activation. Secondary outcomes include communication self-efficacy, pain intensity and interference, and psychological functioning.Having the knowledge and confidence to participate in one's pain care, coupled with the skills needed to effectively communicate with providers, is essential to optimize chronic pain care. This is particularly important for Black patients who often experience lower quality pain care. Interventions such as COOPERATE hold promise for helping patients to acquire the requisite tools to take greater control of their chronic pain care.clinicaltrials.gov, # NCT03562793.

Objectives Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic disorder that affects approximately 100,000 Americans, the majority of whom are African American. SCD-related pain often has deleterious effects on functioning and quality of life. The inherited nature of SCD, SCD-related stigma, and serious physical and functional impact of SCD-related pain create a situation ripe for individuals to appraise their SCD-related pain as unfair or unjust. The aim of this preliminary investigation is to explore the extent to which pediatric patients with SCD appraise their pain as unjust and how these appraisals relate to functioning. Methods Participants were youth with SCD (N = 30, mean age = 11.3, 57% boys) who attended a hematology clinic visit. Patients were invited to complete paper-based questionnaires assessing pain-related injustice appraisals, pain catastrophizing, pain and hurt, functional disability, depression, anxiety, and peer relationships. Results Results of hierarchical regressions indicate that pain-related injustice significantly predicted functional disability, depression, and anxiety after controlling for patient pain and catastrophizing. Conclusions These findings suggest that pain-related injustice appraisals are an important contributor to the pain experience of youth with SCD. Early identification and remediation of pain-related injustice appraisals could have long-term functional benefits for youth with SCD.

Objective Pain-related appraisals, including pain-related injustice, impact the development and maintenance of chronic pain. This cross-sectional study aimed to examine the relationship between the cognitive-emotional components of pain-related injustice—blame/unfairness and severity/irreparability of loss—and functioning in a mixed sample of adolescents with chronic pain. Methods Pediatric patients age 11–18 years (N = 408) completed forms assessing pain-related injustice, pain intensity, and physical and psychosocial functioning as part of their routine assessment in a pediatric chronic pain clinic between January 2014 and January 2019. A series of hierarchical regressions were used to evaluate the relationships among the separate components of pain-related injustice appraisals and functioning. Results Pain intensity and blame/unfairness appraisals were significantly associated with emotional functioning with blame/unfairness being the stronger association (β = −.27). Blame/unfairness appraisals, severity/irreparability appraisals, and pain intensity were significantly associated with physical functioning with pain intensity being the strongest association (β = .36). Pain intensity, blame/unfairness appraisals, and severity/irreparability appraisals were significantly associated with social functioning with blame/unfairness being the strongest association (β = −.34). Pain intensity and severity/irreparability appraisals were significantly associated with school functioning with severity/irreparability being the stronger association (β = −.19). Conclusions These results lend further support to incorporating pain-related injustice appraisals in standard clinical pain assessments. Treatment practices should target the specific injustice appraisals and domains of functioning impacted for each pediatric patient with chronic pain.

Objective Social support has been linked to more effective pain adaptation. The relationship between social support and other relevant constructs is less well understood. Chief among these is patient activation, which has robust links to effective self-management, yet has not been well studied in chronic pain. We sought to better understand these relationships in an effort to inform future intervention strategies for patients with chronic pain. Methods Using baseline data from a clinical trial with patients with chronic pain (N = 213), we analyzed the relationships among perceived social support and patient activation, depression, anxiety, general health perceptions, pain centrality, pain catastrophizing, and pain intensity and interference. Multiple linear regression was used to examine the effect of social support on outcomes. Patient activation was explored as a mediator of the effect of social support on outcomes. Results Social support was significantly associated with all outcomes except pain. Social support explained the greatest variance in patient activation (squared semi-partial correlation = 0.081), followed by depression (0.073) and general health perceptions (0.072). Patient activation was not found to be a significant mediator of the effect of social support on pain-related outcomes. Conclusions These findings provide insight into the roles of patient activation and social support in chronic pain management. Although patient activation did not mediate the relationship between social support and outcomes, this study is an important step toward gaining a more complete understanding of constructs thought to be related to pain self-management and points to the need to advance theory in this area to guide future research. Such work is needed to optimize interventions for patients with chronic pain.

Little is known about the pain experience of the Mexican American (MA) population. We investigated the associations between language use and generation status with chronic pain prevalence, health insurance coverage, and analgesic medication use. We examined 3373 MA respondents from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We found higher levels of English use and generation status were associated with higher odds of reporting chronic pain. For respondents reporting chronic pain, higher levels of English use and generation status were associated with higher odds of being covered by health insurance, lower odds of having a period of time last year without health insurance, and higher odds of being prescribed any analgesic medication, especially opioid medications. We found language use and generation status play a role in MAs' experience, access, and treatment of chronic pain. Patient-, provider-, and systems-level interventions may be needed to reduce these disparities.

Pain appraisals are closely tied to pain and functional outcomes. Pain-related injustice and pain catastrophizing appraisals have both been identified as important cognitive-emotional factors in the pain experience of youth. Although pain-related injustice and catastrophizing have been linked to worse pain outcomes – as primary predictors and intermediary variables – little is known about whether they operate as independent or parallel mediators of the relationship between pain and functioning in youth. We tested pain-related injustice and catastrophizing appraisals as candidate mediators of the relationship between baseline pain intensity and 3-month functional outcomes in adolescents. Youth with chronic pain (N = 89, 76% female, 89% White, average age = 15 years) completed measures assessing pain intensity, pain-related injustice, and catastrophizing at baseline, as well as measures assessing functional disability and overall quality of life 3 months later. Multiple mediation analyses indicated that injustice mediated the relationship between pain intensity and 3 month quality of life. Exploratory analyses of specific quality of life domains indicated that injustice mediated the relationship between pain intensity and 3 month emotional functioning, whereas catastrophizing mediated the relationship between pain intensity and 3 month social functioning. The findings suggest these pain-related appraisals play different intermediary roles in the relationships among pain and future psychosocial outcomes. Perspective Pain-related injustice and catastrophizing appraisals play different intermediary roles in the relationships among pain and future psychosocial outcomes in youth with chronic pain. Treatments targeting pain-related injustice appraisals in pediatric populations are needed to complement existing treatments for catastrophizing.

Objectives To examine relationships in mindfulness and illness acceptance and psychosocial functioning in patients with metastatic breast cancer and their family caregivers. Sample & setting 33 dyads from an academic cancer center in the United States. Methods & variables Participants completed questionnaires on mindfulness, illness acceptance, relationship quality, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Dyadic, cross-sectional data were analyzed using actor-partner interdependence models. Results Greater nonjudging, acting with awareness, and illness acceptance among caregivers were associated with patients' and caregivers' perceptions of better relationship quality. Higher levels of these processes were associated with reduced anxiety and depressive symptoms in patients and caregivers. Implications for nursing Aspects of mindfulness and illness acceptance in dyads confer benefits that are primarily intrapersonal in nature. Nurses may consider introducing mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions to patients and caregivers with adjustment difficulties.

Fatigue interference with activities, mood, and cognition is one of the most prevalent and distressing concerns of metastatic breast cancer patients. To date, there are no evidence-based interventions for reducing fatigue interference in metastatic breast cancer and other advanced cancer populations. In pilot studies, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has shown potential for reducing symptom-related suffering in cancer patients. The current Phase II trial seeks to more definitively examine the efficacy of telephone-based ACT for women with metastatic breast cancer who are experiencing fatigue interference. In this trial, 250 women are randomly assigned to either the ACT intervention or an education/support control condition. Women in both conditions attend six weekly 50-min telephone sessions. The primary aim of this study is to test the effect of telephone-based ACT on fatigue interference. Secondary outcomes include sleep interference, engagement in daily activities, and quality of life. Outcomes are assessed at baseline, 2 weeks post-intervention, and 3 and 6 months post-intervention. This trial also examines whether increases in psychological flexibility, defined as full awareness of the present moment while persisting in behaviors aligned with personal values, account for the beneficial effect of ACT on fatigue interference. After demonstrating ACT's efficacy, the intervention can be widely disseminated to clinicians who care for metastatic breast cancer patients. Our findings will also inform future ACT trials with various cancer populations and functional outcomes.

Background Subjective meaning in life has been theorized to play a critical role in the adjustment to traumatic events. However, its association with post-traumatic stress symptoms has not been quantitatively reviewed. Methods Informed by Park's integrated meaning-making model and evidenced-based psychological treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder, the goals of this meta-analysis were to: (1) to determine the direction and magnitude of the association between meaning in life and post-traumatic stress symptoms; and (2) to examine potential moderators of this association (i.e., age, sex, race, marital status, type of trauma, and meaning in life conceptualization). CINAHL, Embase, PILOT, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Science core collection databases were searched. Results A random-effects meta-analysis was conducted on 26 associations (N = 9,751). A significant, moderate, negative relationship was found between meaning in life and post-traumatic stress symptoms (r = -0.41; 95% CI: -0.47 to -0.35, k = 25). No significant moderators were detected. Conclusions Findings suggest that meaning in life plays a crucial role in adjustment to traumatic events. Development and testing of randomized controlled trials to determine whether increases in meaning in life result in reductions of post-traumatic stress in US military personnel may facilitate ongoing efforts aimed at recovery from trauma.

Race disparities in pain care are well-documented. Given that most black patients are treated by white providers, patient-provider racial discordance is one hypothesized contributor to these disparities. Research and theory suggest that providers' trait-level intergroup anxiety impacts their state-level comfort while treating patients, which, in turn, impacts their pain treatment decisions. To test these hypothesized relationships, we conducted a planned secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial of a perspective-taking intervention to reduce pain treatment disparities. Mediation analyses were conducted on treatment decision data from white providers for black virtual patients with chronic pain. Results indicated that white providers with higher trait-level intergroup anxiety reported lower state-level comfort treating black patients and were thereby more likely to recommend opioid (indirect effect = 0.76, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.21-1.51) and pain specialty (indirect effect = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.26-1.78) treatments and less likely to recommend nonopioid analgesics (indirect effect = -0.45, 95% CI: -0.94 to -0.12). Neither trait-level intergroup anxiety nor state-level comfort significantly influenced provider decisions for physical therapy. This study provides important new information about intrapersonal and interpersonal contributors to race disparities in chronic pain care. These findings suggest that intergroup anxiety and the resulting situational discomfort encroach on the clinical decision-making process by influencing white providers' decisions about which pain treatments to recommend to black patients. Should these findings be replicated in future studies, they would support interventions to help providers become more aware of their trait-level intergroup anxiety and manage their state-level reactions to patients who are racially/ethnically different from themselves.

A growing pediatric and adult literature highlights the role of injustice appraisals in adjustment to pain. However, interpersonal injustice dynamics have remained largely unexplored. The present study investigated the factor structure and criterion validity of parentally adjusted versions of the Injustice Experience Questionnaire, assessing child-oriented (IEQ-Pc) and self-oriented appraisals (IEQ-Ps) in the context of child pain. Participants were triads of healthy children (N .407, M-age = 12) and both their parents and dyads of children with chronic pain (N .319, M-age = 14) and 1 parent. In both samples, children completed measures of functional disability and quality of life (physical, emotional, social, and academic); parents completed the IEQ-Pc, IEQ-Ps, and a measure of parental catastrophizing about child pain. Across samples, a confirmatory oblique two-factor model (Severity/Irreparability-Blame/Unfairness) provided a better fit to the data compared to a one-factor model; nevertheless, the two-factor solution was considered suboptimal. A post hoc exploratory factor analysis consistently revealed 1 factor. In terms of criterion validity, the IEQ-Pc and IEQ-Ps demonstrated differential associations depending on the child's pain versus healthy status, independent of parental catastrophizing. Further, findings in the healthy sample indicated that fathers' self-oriented injustice appraisals related to lower child social function. In the clinical sample, parental child-oriented injustice appraisals related to greater child functional disability and lower physical, emotional, social, and academic function. Current findings support the unique role of parental injustice appraisals, assessed by the IEQ-Pc and IEQ-Ps, in understanding child pain, but also suggest these may only partially capture the phenomenology of parental injustice appraisals in the context of child pain. Perspective: This manuscript presents an examination of the construct and criterion validity of 2 parentally adjusted versions of the Injustice Experience Questionnaire. These measures could be valuable tools for clinicians in examining how parents respond to their child's pain as it impacts both the child's life and the parents'. (C) 2020 U.S. Association for the Study of Pain. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Purpose The purpose of the study was to examine associations of immigrant and racial/ethnic status with diabetes risk perception among a population-based sample of US adults without diabetes. Racial/ethnic minorities are at increased risk of developing diabetes. Emerging research shows that immigrant (foreign born) individuals are also at increased risk, but less is understood about risk perception in this group. Methods Respondents were 11,569 adults from the NHANES (2011-2016; National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) reporting no diabetes or prediabetes. Immigrant status was coded as foreign born or US born and analyses used NHANES racial/ethnic categories: white, black, Mexican American, other Hispanic, Asian, and other/multiracial. Immigrant status and variables comparing each minority group with whites were simultaneously entered into models predicting risk perception (yes/no), adjusting for demographic and diabetes risk factors. Results Being foreign born was associated with decreased odds of perceived risk, while being Mexican American, Asian, and other/multiracial were associated with increased odds of perceived risk. Discussion Foreign-born adults are less likely than US-born adults to report perceived risk for diabetes. Lower diabetes risk perception among immigrants could result in poorer preventative behaviors and later diabetes detection.

PURPOSE: Little research has examined cancer patients’ expectations, goals, and priorities for symptom improvement. Thus, we examined these outcomes in metastatic breast cancer patients to provide patients’ perspectives on clinically meaningful symptom improvement and priorities for symptom management. METHODS: Eighty women with metastatic breast cancer participated in a survey with measures of comorbidity, functional status, engagement in roles and activities, distress, quality of life, and the modified Patient Centered Outcomes Questionnaire that focused on 10 common symptoms in cancer patients. RESULTS: On average, patients reported low to moderate severity across the 10 symptoms and expected symptom treatment to be successful. Patients indicated that a 49% reduction in fatigue, 48% reduction in thinking problems, and 43% reduction in sleep problems would represent successful symptom treatment. Cluster analysis based on ratings of the importance of symptom improvement yielded three clusters of patients: (1) those who rated thinking problems, sleep problems, and fatigue as highly important, (2) those who rated pain as moderately important, and (3) those who rated all symptoms as highly important. The first patient cluster differed from other subgroups in severity of thinking problems and education. CONCLUSIONS: Metastatic breast cancer patients report differing symptom treatment priorities and criteria for treatment success across symptoms. Considering cancer patients’ perspectives on clinically meaningful symptom improvement and priorities for symptom management will ensure that treatment is consistent with their values and goals.

Previous research suggests that women who experience pain during intercourse also experience higher rates of depressive symptoms. Loneliness might be one factor that contributes to this relationship. We hypothesized that women who experience more severe and interfering pain during intercourse would report higher rates of loneliness and higher rates of depressive symptoms. Further, we hypothesized that loneliness would mediate the relationship between pain during intercourse and depressive symptoms. A total of 104 female participants (85.6% white, 74.03% partnered, 20.9 [3.01] years old) completed an online survey including demographic information, PROMIS Vaginal Discomfort Measure, PROMIS Depression Measure, and Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale. Pearson correlations and bootstrapped mediation analysis examined the relationships among pain during intercourse, loneliness, and depressive symptoms. Pain during intercourse, loneliness, and depressive symptoms were all significantly correlated (p

Background Mexican immigrants in the United States suffer from poor oral health. The objective of the current study was to explore the utility of applying theory-based factors associated with seeking preventive dental care in a sample of Mexican American adults. Methods Data were collected from a cross-sectional survey of a sample of 157 people of Mexican origin (64% female; age 34 ± 11 years) recruited primarily from church congregations and lay community organizations in Central Indiana. Using the Integrative Model of Behavioral Prediction as the guiding framework, structural equation modeling was used to test factors associated with intention to seek preventive dental care. Results Attitude towards seeking preventive dental care (estimate = 0.37; p

PURPOSE: Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality in women worldwide. With medical advances, metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients often live for years with many symptoms that interfere with activities. However, there is a paucity of efficacious interventions to address symptom-related suffering and functional interference. Thus, this study examined the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of telephone-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for symptom interference with functioning in MBC patients. METHODS: Symptomatic MBC patients (N=47) were randomly assigned to six telephone sessions of ACT or six telephone sessions of education/support. Patients completed measures of symptom interference and measures assessing the severity of pain, fatigue, sleep disturbance, depressive symptoms, and anxiety. RESULTS: The eligibility screening rate (64%) and high retention (83% at 8 weeks post-baseline) demonstrated feasibility. When examining within-group change, ACT participants showed decreases in symptom interference (i.e., fatigue interference and sleep-related impairment; Cohen’s d range=−.23 to −.31) at 8 and 12 weeks post-baseline, whereas education/support participants showed minimal change in these outcomes (d range=−.03 to .07). Additionally, at 12 weeks post-baseline, ACT participants showed moderate decreases in fatigue and sleep disturbance (both ds=−.43), whereas education/support participants showed small decreases in these outcomes (ds=−.24 and −.18 for fatigue and sleep disturbance, respectively). Both the ACT and education/support groups showed reductions in depressive symptoms (ds=−.27 and −.28) at 12 weeks post-baseline. Group differences in all outcomes were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: ACT shows feasibility and promise in improving fatigue and sleep-related outcomes in MBC patients and warrants further investigation.

Compared with men, women report more pain and are at increased risk for having pain discounted or misattributed to psychological causes. Overweight individuals experience high rates of pain and may receive suboptimal care because of provider bias. Research suggests the social consequences of being overweight are worse for women than men, and that gender and weight uniquely and interactively affect pain experience and care. Healthy participants (n = 616) viewed 6 videos of back pain patients (1 female and 1 male of normal weight, overweight, and obese categories) performing a functional task. Participants provided judgements/ratings regarding patient pain (intensity, interference, exaggeration), potential sources of patient pain (medical, psychological), and treatment recommendations (opioids, psychological therapy, seek workplace accommodations). Results suggest that the pain of normal and overweight women and obese men was discounted (judged as less intense, less interfering, more exaggerated, and less attributable to medical factors) and judged as less in need of treatment (treated with less opioids and workplace accommodations). Across all weight categories, women's pain was attributed more to psychological factors and was more likely to receive recommendations for psychological therapy than men's pain. These findings highlight the differential effect of patient weight on pain-related judgements about women and men. Perspective This article examines the relationships among patient weight, patient gender, and observers' pain appraisals and treatment recommendations. These findings highlight the differential effect of patient weight on pain-related judgements about women and men and indicate the need for research to determine how these judgements affect treatment decisions in clinical settings.

Recent evidence suggests that atypical major depressive disorder (MDD) – whose key features include the reversed somatic symptoms of hyperphagia (increased appetite) and hypersomnia (increased sleep) – is a stronger predictor of future obesity than other MDD subtypes. The mechanisms underlying this relationship are unclear. The present study sought to elucidate whether the individual symptoms of hyperphagia, hypersomnia, poor appetite, and disturbed sleep have differential relationships with food attentional bias, emotional eating, external eating, and restrained eating. This cross-sectional laboratory study involved 103 young adults without obesity (mean age = 20 years, 79% female, 26% non-White, mean BMI = 23.4 kg/m2). We measured total depressive symptom severity and individual symptoms of hyperphagia, poor appetite, and disturbed sleep using the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-20 (SCL-20) and added an item to assess hypersomnia; food attentional bias using a Food Stroop task; and self-reported eating behaviors using the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Hyperphagia was positively associated with emotional eating but negatively associated with food attentional bias. Hypersomnia was negatively associated with emotional eating. Poor appetite was negatively associated with emotional eating. Disturbed sleep was positively associated with food attentional bias and emotional eating. An aggregate of the remaining 15 depressive symptoms (SCL-15) was positively associated with emotional and restrained eating. Our findings highlight the importance of examining the direction of somatic depressive symptoms, and they set the stage for future research to identify subgroups of people with depression at greatest risk for obesity (e.g., those with hyperphagia and/or disturbed sleep) and the mechanisms responsible for this elevated risk (e.g., emotional eating).