The role of mental health and self-efficacy in the pain experience of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Publication
Affiliates	Helen E. Stephens [1], Erik Lehman [2], Divisha Raheja [1], Chengwu Yang [3], Susan Walsh [4] & Zachary Simmons [5] [1] Department of Neurology The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine [2] Department of Public Health Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine [3] Department of Public Health Sciences & Office for Scholarship in Learning and Education Research, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine [4] ALS Association Greater Philadelphia Chapter [5] Department of Neurology and Humanities, The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine
Journal	Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration
Summary	To assess the role of self-efficacy, or ‘mind over matter’, in mitigating pain, PALS from the National ALS Registry experiencing pain were invited to participate in an online survey comprised of the Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form; Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Chronic Pain Self-Efficacy Scale. Results indicated that anxiety and depression are common in PALS experiencing pain and self-efficacy appears to mitigate pain. A multifactorial approach to pain management should be considered in these patients, addressing mental health and self-efficacy to augment pharmacologic pain treatments.
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