Patients with musculoskeletal pain often present with central sensitization-related symptoms (CSS), such as insomnia and fatigue. However, the clinical symptoms vary among individual patients, with some having mild pain but having strong CSS, and others having mild CSS but having strong pain. In the study, patients were classified into four groups based on the severity of CSS and pain intensity using the results of the questionnaire, and cross-sectional characteristics and longitudinal clinical outcomes were analyzed.

　The results showed that the four groups classified by CSS and pain intensity had different characteristics in terms of body perception abnormalities and psychological factors. In addition, NRS* improved well in the group where both CSS and pain intensity were mild, but it tended to be difficult to improve in other groups, and in particular, the two groups with severe CSS had poor clinical outcomes. Do you get it.

　If related symptoms such as insomnia and fatigue are strong, clinical outcomes are likely to be poor, and even mild pain may be difficult to improve, and in some patients, the symptoms may become severe. We need to deal with it. In the future, we plan to examine the underlying nervous hypersensitivity of patients who exhibit these related symptoms.

*NRS: Numerical rating scales. A method in which you are asked to verbally express the intensity of your pain on an 11-level scale.

Paper information:[Scientific Reports] Characterizing clinical progression in patients with musculoskeletal pain by pain severity and central sensitization-related symptoms