ArticlePsychosomatic medicine2023
Traumatic Events, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Central Sensitization in Chronic Pain Patients of a German University Outpatient Pain Clinic.
Article in Psychosomatic medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Measurement Properties of the Patient Health Questionnaire-15 and Somatic Symptom Scale-8: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2024Pooled it
- Outcomes of patients with post-traumatic stress disorder following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair.JSES reviews, reports, and techniques · 2026Article
- A Mixed-Methods Examination of Interdisciplinary Strategies for Addressing Trauma and Chronic Pain in Group Therapy.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- A Multi-Institutional and Nationwide Analysis of the Social Determinants of Persistent Pain After Surgery.Anesthesia and analgesia · 2026Observational
- Article
- The greater the pleiotropic effects, the greater the benefits - cannabis as a "biopsychosocial" drug: a mixed-methods study on chronic non-cancer pain.Journal of cannabis research · 2026Article
- Idiopathic vulvodynia - a psychosomatic disease? A cross-sectional single-center study.BMC women's health · 2026Article
- Central Sensitisation After Orthopaedic Trauma: An Overlooked Contributor to Chronic Pain and Functional Disability-A Scoping Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- The COMPASS framework for chronic pain and posttraumatic stress disorder: navigating the transition from threat to safety through yoga.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Towards a better definition of nociplastic pain conditions: a psychological grounded study on fibromyalgia, chronic headache and vulvodynia.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2025Article
- [Etiological factors in chronic widespread pain and/or fibromyalgia syndrome: subjective perspectives of patients, general practitioners and psychotherapists : A pilot study].Schmerz (Berlin, Germany) · 2025Article
- Trauma and psychological impact in fibromyalgia and other central sensitization syndromes: the role of anxiety and pain acceptance.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- [The Bidirectional relationship between chronic pain and traumatic life events : Mechanisms and therapeutic implications].Schmerz (Berlin, Germany) · 2025Review
- Central Sensitization Syndromes and Trauma: Mediating Role of Sleep Quality, Pain Catastrophizing, and Emotional Dysregulation Between Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Pain.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Summary and Analysis of Digital Pain Manikin Data in Adults With Pain Experience: Scoping Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- The current state of digital manikins to support pain self-reporting: a systematic literature review.Pain reports · 2025Review
- Stressful Life Events and Psychosomatic Symptoms in Fibromyalgia Syndrome and Rheumatoid Arthritis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Overview: Chronic Pain and Cannabis-Based Medicines.Pharmacopsychiatry · 2024Review
- Mental health markers and protective factors in students with symptoms of physical pain across WEIRD and non-WEIRD samples - a network analysis.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- Chronic pain, chronic stress and substance use: overlapping mechanisms and implications.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectivePosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic life events are often coupled to chronic pain, possibly linked by central sensitization. We wanted to assess the prevalence of traumatic events and PTSD in chronic pain patients of a German university hospital outpatient pain clinic. Moreover, we evaluated the extent of indicators and co-occurring traits of central sensitization in comorbid patients.
methodsWe retrospectively divided 914 chronic pain patients into four groups depending on their trauma severity: no trauma, accidental trauma, interpersonal trauma, and PTSD. We collected electronic pain drawings focusing on pain area and widespreadness, as well as information about pain intensity, sleep impairment, disability, stress, anxiety, depression, and somatization. Differences between groups were calculated using Kruskal-Wallis with post-hoc Mann-Whitney tests.
resultsOf 914 patients, 231 (25%) had no trauma, 210 (23%) had accidental traumas, 283 (31%) had interpersonal traumas, 99 (11%) had PTSD, and 91 (10%) could not be classified. We observed statistically significant differences between groups in pain area and widespreadness, as well as maximal pain, sleep impairment, disability, stress, anxiety, depression, and somatization. The severity of symptoms increased with trauma severity.
conclusionsTraumatic life events and PTSD are frequent in chronic pain patients. The increased pain area and widespreadness, as well as the increased negative impact on co-occurring traits of sensory sensitivity (anxiety, depression, somatization), are compatible with central sensitization in comorbid patients. Therefore, a heightened awareness of the comorbidity between traumatic experiences and chronic pain is recommended.
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