The impact of pain amplification on the response to physical therapy
What is it about?
This study analyzed how the degree of pain amplification (nociplastic pain) can impact the response to physical therapy for patients with muscle (myofascial) pain. This prospective, observational cohort study compared pain phenotyping and functional measures in 30 participants with non-acute neck/shoulder girdle primary myofascial pain following 3-months of physical therapy. The Fibromyalgia Survey Questionnaire (FSQ) Score served as a surrogate of pain amplification. The degree of nociplastic pain in patients with myofascial pain appears to be inversely related to improvements from a peripherally based treatment. This is not to say that individuals with moderate to higher levels of nociplastic pain do not benefit from physical therapy, but they proportionally benefit less.
Why is it important?
This study indicates that the baseline degree of nociplastic pain has an impact on both symptomatic and functional outcomes following a referral to physical therapy regardless of the type of treatment or the number of therapy visits.