Abstract
Introduction: Chronic pain is a significant health problem worldwide, with a prevalence in the general population of approximately 40%. Alexithymia - the personality trait of having difficulties with emotional awareness and self-regulation - has been reported to contribute to an increased risk of several chronic diseases and health conditions, and limited research indicates a potential role for alexithymia in the development and maintenance of chronic pain. However, no study has yet examined the associations between alexithymia and chronic pain in the general population. Methods: We administered measures assessing alexithymia, pain, disability, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction to 927 adults in Hisayama, Japan. We classified the participants into four groups (low-normal alexithymia, middle-normal alexithymia, high-normal alexithymia, and alexithymic) based on their responses to the alexithymia measure. We calculated the risk estimates for the criterion measures by a logistic regression analysis. Results: Controlling for demographic variables, the odds ratio (OR) for having chronic pain was significantly higher in the high-normal (OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.07-2.09) and alexithymic groups (OR: 2.56, 95% CI: 1.47-4.45) compared to the low-normal group. Approximately 40% of the participants belonged to these two high-risk groups. In the subanalyses of the 439 participants with chronic pain, the levels of pain intensity, disability, depression, and anxiety were significantly increased and the degree of life satisfaction was decreased with elevating alexithymia categories. Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that, in the general population, higher levels of alexithymia are associated with a higher risk of having chronic pain. The early identification and treatment of alexithymia and negative affect may be beneficial in preventing chronic pain and reducing the clinical and economic burdens of chronic pain. Further research is needed to determine if this association is due to a causal effect of alexithymia on the prevalence and severity of chronic pain.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e90984 |
| Journal | PloS one |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 12 2014 |
Fingerprint
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- General
Cite this
Alexithymia is associated with greater risk of chronic pain and negative affect and with lower life satisfaction in a general population : The Hisayama study. / Shibata, Mao; Ninomiya, Toshiharu; Jensen, Mark P.; Anno, Kozo; Yonemoto, Koji; Makino, Seiko; Iwaki, Rie; Yamashiro, Koji; Yoshida, Toshiyuki; Imada, Yuko; Kubo, Chiharu; Kiyohara, Yutaka; Sudo, Nobuyuki; Hosoi, Masako.
In: PloS one, Vol. 9, No. 3, e90984, 12.03.2014.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Alexithymia is associated with greater risk of chronic pain and negative affect and with lower life satisfaction in a general population
T2 - The Hisayama study
AU - Shibata, Mao
AU - Ninomiya, Toshiharu
AU - Jensen, Mark P.
AU - Anno, Kozo
AU - Yonemoto, Koji
AU - Makino, Seiko
AU - Iwaki, Rie
AU - Yamashiro, Koji
AU - Yoshida, Toshiyuki
AU - Imada, Yuko
AU - Kubo, Chiharu
AU - Kiyohara, Yutaka
AU - Sudo, Nobuyuki
AU - Hosoi, Masako
PY - 2014/3/12
Y1 - 2014/3/12
N2 - Introduction: Chronic pain is a significant health problem worldwide, with a prevalence in the general population of approximately 40%. Alexithymia - the personality trait of having difficulties with emotional awareness and self-regulation - has been reported to contribute to an increased risk of several chronic diseases and health conditions, and limited research indicates a potential role for alexithymia in the development and maintenance of chronic pain. However, no study has yet examined the associations between alexithymia and chronic pain in the general population. Methods: We administered measures assessing alexithymia, pain, disability, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction to 927 adults in Hisayama, Japan. We classified the participants into four groups (low-normal alexithymia, middle-normal alexithymia, high-normal alexithymia, and alexithymic) based on their responses to the alexithymia measure. We calculated the risk estimates for the criterion measures by a logistic regression analysis. Results: Controlling for demographic variables, the odds ratio (OR) for having chronic pain was significantly higher in the high-normal (OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.07-2.09) and alexithymic groups (OR: 2.56, 95% CI: 1.47-4.45) compared to the low-normal group. Approximately 40% of the participants belonged to these two high-risk groups. In the subanalyses of the 439 participants with chronic pain, the levels of pain intensity, disability, depression, and anxiety were significantly increased and the degree of life satisfaction was decreased with elevating alexithymia categories. Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that, in the general population, higher levels of alexithymia are associated with a higher risk of having chronic pain. The early identification and treatment of alexithymia and negative affect may be beneficial in preventing chronic pain and reducing the clinical and economic burdens of chronic pain. Further research is needed to determine if this association is due to a causal effect of alexithymia on the prevalence and severity of chronic pain.
AB - Introduction: Chronic pain is a significant health problem worldwide, with a prevalence in the general population of approximately 40%. Alexithymia - the personality trait of having difficulties with emotional awareness and self-regulation - has been reported to contribute to an increased risk of several chronic diseases and health conditions, and limited research indicates a potential role for alexithymia in the development and maintenance of chronic pain. However, no study has yet examined the associations between alexithymia and chronic pain in the general population. Methods: We administered measures assessing alexithymia, pain, disability, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction to 927 adults in Hisayama, Japan. We classified the participants into four groups (low-normal alexithymia, middle-normal alexithymia, high-normal alexithymia, and alexithymic) based on their responses to the alexithymia measure. We calculated the risk estimates for the criterion measures by a logistic regression analysis. Results: Controlling for demographic variables, the odds ratio (OR) for having chronic pain was significantly higher in the high-normal (OR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.07-2.09) and alexithymic groups (OR: 2.56, 95% CI: 1.47-4.45) compared to the low-normal group. Approximately 40% of the participants belonged to these two high-risk groups. In the subanalyses of the 439 participants with chronic pain, the levels of pain intensity, disability, depression, and anxiety were significantly increased and the degree of life satisfaction was decreased with elevating alexithymia categories. Conclusions: The findings demonstrate that, in the general population, higher levels of alexithymia are associated with a higher risk of having chronic pain. The early identification and treatment of alexithymia and negative affect may be beneficial in preventing chronic pain and reducing the clinical and economic burdens of chronic pain. Further research is needed to determine if this association is due to a causal effect of alexithymia on the prevalence and severity of chronic pain.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84898015501&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84898015501&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0090984
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0090984
M3 - Article
C2 - 24621785
AN - SCOPUS:84898015501
VL - 9
JO - PLoS One
JF - PLoS One
SN - 1932-6203
IS - 3
M1 - e90984
ER -