Effect of Parental and Child Pain Catastrophizing on Pain Modulation

It is yet to be determined why family history of chronic pain is a risk factor for some chronic pain disorders such as migraine. Several biopsychosocial factors may impact this relationship. This study focuses on pain catastrophization, which is a well-established psychosocial influence on the perception of pain. We explored the relationships between pain catastrophizing scores of an adolescent and their parent and the adolescent’s pain modulation capabilities. Thirty-six healthy female adolescents (9-16 years old, mean=12.08) completed a battery of quantitative sensory testing which included mechanical temporal summation and conditioned pain modulation paradigm (test stimulus was pressure pain threshold; conditioning stimulus was foot immersion in cold water [80 C]). In addition, both adolescent and their parent completed the pain catastrophizing scale (aPCS and pPCS, respectively). Interestingly, aPCS was not found to be correlated with pPCS (r2=0.010; p=0.561). Neither aPCS nor pPCS were correlated to the pain modulation responses. It is possible PCS has less influence on pain modulation than pain sensitivity in healthy female adolescents. Future studies should examine these relationships in adolescents with chronic pain. Funded by IHS and National Institutes of Health (R01ns129742).