Self-reported pain sensitivity: Lack of correlation with pain threshold and tolerance

Robert R. Edwards, Roger B. Fillingim

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

45 Scopus citations

Abstract

Many recent studies and several reviews have highlighted the potential clinical applications of experimental pain testing (e.g., for predicting post-surgical pain, treatment responsiveness, etc.). However, the implementation of quantitative sensory testing of pain sensitivity on a broad scale is limited by requirements of time, equipment, and expertise, and their associated costs. One reasonable question is whether one can obtain, via self-report, a valid index of an individual's pain sensitivity and pain tolerance. We analyzed data from a large number of subjects (n = 505) who had undergone standardized thermal pain testing, and found that while higher self-reported pain sensitivity was associated with higher scores on a measure of anxiety, no relationship was observed between subjects' self-report of pain sensitivity and subjects' actual pain threshold or tolerance. These findings suggest that circumventing psychophysical pain testing by assessing individuals' self-reported pain sensitivity is unlikely to be a useful strategy.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)594-598
Number of pages5
JournalEuropean Journal of Pain (United Kingdom)
Volume11
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2007

Keywords

  • Pain sensitivity
  • Self-report
  • Threshold
  • Tolerance

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
  • Neurology
  • Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology

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