Abstract
Study design:
Self-reported survey.
Objective:
Our purpose was to identify the predictors of pain medication misuse (PMM) among participants with spinal cord injury (SCI).
Setting:
A medical university in the southeastern United States.
Methods:
A total of 919 adults with impairment from traumatic SCI of at least 1-year duration, who reported at least one painful condition and were taking prescription medication to treat pain, were included in this study. PMM was measured by the Pain Medication Questionnaire (PMQ).
Results:
The average PMQ score was 19.7, with 25.8% of participants scoring at or above the cutoff of 25, which is indicative of PMM. A three-stage logistic regression analysis was conducted by sequentially adding three sets of predictors to the equation: (1) demographic and injury characteristics; (2) pain characteristics and (3) frequency of pain medication use. Age and education level were protective of PMM, whereas pain intensity, pain interference and pain medication use were risk factors. Number of painful days was not significant in the final model.
Conclusion:
PMM must be of concern after SCI, given its high prevalence among those with at least one painful condition and its relationship with pain indicators.
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Acknowledgements
The contents of this publication are developed under a grant from the Department of Education, NIDRR grant numbers H133B090005 and H133G090059. However, those contents do not necessarily represent the policy of the Department of Education, and endorsement by the Federal Government should not be assumed. We thank the following individuals who contributed to the work reported in the manuscript: Richard Aust, Josh Acuna, Dr. Yue Cao, Jennifer Coker, Alex Jackson, Melinda Jarnecke, Kristian Manley, Karla Reed and D’Andra Roper.
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Krause, J., Clark, J. & Saunders, L. Pain medication misuse among participants with spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord 53, 630–635 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2015.42
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2015.42
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