Somatosensory Amplification, Health Anxiety and Pain Catastrophizing in Individuals with Chronic Musculoskeletal System Pain

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the somatosensory amplification, pain catastrophizing levels, and health anxiety of the patients with musculoskeletal system pain through comparing them both with control group and with themselves. Materials and Methods: Of all patients who applied to the physical therapy and rehabilitation outpatient clinic with a complaint of musculoskeletal pain and who met the criteria for inclusion. The patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and osteoarthritis (OA) based on American College of Rheumatology criteria and the patients diagnosed with cervical disc hernia (CDH) and lumbar disc hernia (LDH) based on anamnesis, physical examination, and imaging methods were included in the study. All participants were subjected to demographic data form, the pain catastrophizing scale (PCS), somatosensory amplification scale (SSAS), hospital anxiety-depression scale (HADS), and health anxiety inventory (HAI). Results: The patient group had 120 patients (45 - FMS, 27 - OA, 29 - LDH, and 19 - CDH diagnoses) while the control had 70 individuals. There were no differences between the study groups for demographic data except for working status and economic level. It was determined that there were no differences between the patient and control groups for any subscales of HADS. For HAI only, the "negative consequences" subscale was lower in the patient group (p=0.012). It was also found that for SSAS and PCS, the patient group had higher scores than the controls (p=0.008 and p<0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Patients presenting with chronic musculoskeletal system pain should also be supported psychiatrically to help them better with the prognosis of their ailments and to allow them to tolerate the pain and evaluate it without exaggerating the somatic symptoms.