SynthesisThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2013
Patients' experiences of chronic non-malignant musculoskeletal pain: a qualitative systematic review.
Synthesis in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 70 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
70 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 146 citations in OpenAlex.
- Adults' Experiences and Perceptions of Electronic Devices for Diabetes Self-Management: A Qualitative Evidence Synthesis.Nursing & health sciences · 2026Pooled it
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- A Mega-Ethnography of Qualitative Meta-Syntheses on Return to Work in People with Chronic Health Conditions.Die Rehabilitation · 2024Pooled it
- A Meta-Synthesis of the Experience of Chronic Temporomandibular Disorder Patients Within Health Care ServicesJournal of oral & facial pain and headache · 2023Pooled it
- Lidocaine for postoperative pain after cardiac surgery: a systematic review.Journal of cardiothoracic surgery · 2021Pooled it
- Behavioural modification interventions for medically unexplained symptoms in primary care: systematic reviews and economic evaluation.Health technology assessment (Winchester, England) · 2020Pooled it
- Thwarted credibility work and double binds in medically unexplained pain in Japan: a qualitative study.PEC innovation · 2026Article
- Surgical Neurolysis for Atypical Neuropathy Diagnosed via Physical Examination Significantly Improves Chronic Pain Despite Negative Workup.Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open · 2026Article
- Stakeholder perspectives on musculoskeletal pain assessment and management in the UK: a qualitative study.Therapeutic advances in musculoskeletal disease · 2026Article
- Experiences and impact of chronic pain in South Africans living in a rural area: a qualitative study.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Why do you think you still have pain? Individuals' beliefs on the biopsychosocial factors that contribute to their chronic musculoskeletal pain: a qualitative exploration.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Article
- Rethinking pain: a paradigm shift in primary care for chronic pain via community-based, culturally-responsive GP support.Pain management · 2025Article
- Evaluating online health information on PIFP: A cross-platform analysis of content quality and readability.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Reconfiguring Pain Interpretation Within a Social Model of Health Using a Simplified Version of Wilber's All Quadrant All Levels Framework: An Integral Vision.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Resentful, Resigned and Respectful: Opioid Analgesics, Pain and Control, a Qualitative Study.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Recognition at the Heart of the Complex Situations Experienced by People With Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2025Article
- Article
- Approach to Adult Patients with Musculoskeletal Complaints and Normal Findings: A Guide for Clinical Practice.Orthopedic research and reviews · 2025Review
- Exploring pain and suffering through spatial acousmatic music: innovative perspectives beyond conventional music therapy.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- An integral vision of pain and its persistence: a whole-person, whole-system, salutogenic perspective.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2025Article
10 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMusculoskeletal (MSK) pain is one of the most predominant types of pain and accounts for a large portion of the primary care workload.
aimTo systematically review and integrate the findings of qualitative research to increase understanding of patients' experiences of chronic non-malignant MSK pain. DESIGN AND
settingSynthesis of qualitative research using meta-ethnography using six electronic databases up until February 2012 (Medline, Embase, Cinahl, Psychinfo, Amed and HMIC).
methodDatabases were searched from their inception until February 2012, supplemented by hand-searching contents lists of specific journals for 2001-2011 and citation tracking. Full published reports of qualitative studies exploring adults' own experience of chronic non-malignant MSK pain were eligible for inclusion.
resultsOut of 24 992 titles, 676 abstracts, and 321 full texts were screened, 77 papers reporting 60 individual studies were included. A new concept of pain as an adversarial struggle emerged. This adversarial struggle was to: 1) affirm self; 2) reconstruct self in time; 3) construct an explanation for suffering; 4) negotiate the healthcare system; and 5) prove legitimacy. However, despite this struggle there is also a sense for some patients of 6) moving forward alongside pain.
conclusionsThis review provides a theoretical underpinning for improving patient experience and facilitating a therapeutic collaborative partnership. A conceptual model is presented, which offers opportunities for improvement by involving patients, showing them their pain is understood, and forming the basis to help patients move forward alongside their pain.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.