Biomedical subjects

Sabine A Janssen

Publications and source records attributed to Sabine A Janssen.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

The effects of failing to control pain: an experimental investigation.

Chronic pain patients are often confronted with repeated failure to achieve pain relief. The aim of this study was to experimentally investigate the effects of repeated failing attempts to control pain on pain impact (pain intensity, emotional and physiological responses). Perceived control over an electrocutaneous pain stimulus was manipulated between subjects by success or failure feedback on a task by which control over pain could be acquired. In addition, success or failure at the task was manipulated without suggesting a possibility to control pain. It was hypothesized that successful control would lead to lowest pain impact, whereas failure to control pain would lead to even higher pain impact than absent control. Furthermore, it was hypothesized that failure feedback would increase pain impact when compared to success feedback. Results indicated that repeated failure to control pain increased anger and heart rate responses compared to the other conditions, but not pain intensity. It is concluded that persistent efforts to control pain in the face of failure may lead to the maintenance or exacerbation of physiological and emotional responses.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2002

Negative affect and sensitization to pain.

Pain usually has a strong negative affective component, which is believed to modulate pain perception. After reviewing theories on the link between negative affect and pain, mechanisms are discussed by which negative affect may either increase or inhibit pain. Possible pain-inhibiting mechanisms are endogenous opioid release, blood pressure reactivity, and distraction of attention; possible pain-increasing mechanisms are autonomic and muscular reactivity, misattribution of arousal, hypervigilance to pain, worrying, and avoidance behavior. It is emphasized that each of these mechanisms can be very adaptive in acute pain situations to prevent injury and promote recovery. In chronic pain, however, ongoing physiological arousal and hypervigilance to pain, induced or magnified by negative affect, may cause sensitization to pain. Furthermore, worrying about pain and avoidance of pain-inducing activities may increase negative affect, ypervigilance, and functional disability. It is argued that, in the long run, pain-related negative affect has sensitizing and disabling effects.

Affect↗

PubMed1998

Anxiety and pain: epinephrine-induced hyperalgesia and attentional influences.

The role of peripheral epinephrine in the influence of anxiety on pain was investigated by intravenously infusing epinephrine and placebo in three increasing doses. The effect of epinephrine was measured within subjects on several subjective and autonomic measures: subjective pain, skin conductance response, heart rate response due to electrical stimulation, threshold for heat pain and threshold for pressure pain. Heat pain threshold was measured both on normal skin and on skin sensitized with capsaicin, since there is evidence that effects of sympathetic stimulation are only to be found in damaged or sensitized skin. Epinephrine caused a slight increase in subjective pain due to electrical stimulation and a decrease in heat pain threshold, which was larger on capsaicin-treated than on normal skin. However, heart rate response due to electrical stimulation and pressure pain threshold were not significantly influenced, while skin conductance response was even inhibited by epinephrine. Attentional focus, which was manipulated within electrical stimulation, seemed to have a much stronger influence on pain responses than pharmacological manipulation, independent of epinephrine. It may be speculated that, although evidence was found for effects of epinephrine on pain, they may be overruled by effects of attention.

Adrenergic Agonists↗