Abstract
Fibromyalgia is central sensitization pain disorder with various psychological symptoms. Our aim is to compare trait paranoia, self-esteem and impulsivity between fibromyalgia patients (FM), chronic neuropathic pain sufferers (CNP) and healthy control. We administrated the Mini International Neuropsychologic Interview to 30 FM, 27 CNP and 22 HC. All participants completed the Paranoia, Rosenberg Self-Esteem and Short UPPS-P Impulsivity Behavior Scales, Beck Depression and State-Trait Anxiety inventories. Patients provided pain ratings and completed the French version of the McGill Pain Questionnaire and Pain Catastrophizing Scale. An analysis of variance compared the three groups, with adjustment for psychological distress, pain severity and education level. Anxiety-related psychiatric comorbidities were more prevalent in FM. Depression and state anxiety were higher in both CNP and FM, while trait anxiety was higher in FM compared to two other groups. Paranoia scores were significantly higher among FM than among HC, with intermediate scores in CNP. These group differences remained after adjustment for psychological distress, pain severity and education level. Lower self-esteem and higher negative urgency in patients with FM disappeared when results were adjusted for psychological distress. FM described sensory and affective aspects of pain as more severe and displayed higher pain catastrophizing than CNP group. These results suggest that emotion-related distress is higher in FM than in CNP.
Highlights
Fibromyalgia (FM), described as a prototypal central chronic pain disorder, is characterized by widespread chronic pain as its core symptom, sleep disturbances, psychological distress, fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, and somatic symptoms (Häuser et al, 2015)
Our findings were consistent with the literature data that affective disorders are more prevalent in fibromyalgia patients (FM) than in other chronic pain conditions (Häuser et al, 2015), as current and past mood and anxiety disorders were more prevalent in the FM group than in the chronic neuropathic pain sufferers (CNP) or healthy controls (HC)
We found higher depression and state anxiety scores in patients with CNP than in HC, but trait anxiety was only higher in patients with FM
Summary
Fibromyalgia (FM), described as a prototypal central chronic pain disorder, is characterized by widespread chronic pain as its core symptom, sleep disturbances, psychological distress, fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, and somatic symptoms (Häuser et al, 2015). It occurs in 2% - 4% of general population, mostly in women, and can induce severe functional disability (Häuser et al, 2015). Emotion-related processes would refer to the psychological, psychopathological and neurological mechanisms by which distressed emotional reactions in individuals are converted to non-distressed reactions (Baker, 2007). Direct comparison of these processes in two distinct patients’ groups, chronic neuropathic pain sufferers (CNP) and FM, could give us insight into psychopathological mechanisms of vulnerability to central sensitization for pain
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