Financial stress predictors and the emotional and physical health of chronic pain patients

This study sought to examine the effects of weekly changes in financial stressors on physical and mental health of arthritis patients. Weekly telephone interviews provided data on health symptoms, financial stressors, interpersonal stress, negative affect, and average pain for arthritis patients and healthy individuals. Multilevel analyses revealed that fluctuations in financial stress were associated with greater health complaints and negative affect, but not more pain for arthritis patients. An interaction between interpersonal stress and financial stress was observed such that weeks of increased interpersonal stress, with increased financial stress, were associated with more health symptoms especially during weeks of increased pain. These findings suggest that financial stress contributes to both physical and mental health and appears important for arthritis patients.