H-coil repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation does not improve executive function in patients with chronic peripheral neuropathic pain: a randomized sham-controlled crossover study.

Introduction: Deep rTMS is an increasingly popular noninvasive brain stimulation technique which has shown promise for treating cognitive impairments. However, few studies have investigated the cognitive effects it could exert in patients with chronic peripheral neuropathic pain. Therefore, we aimed to assess the effects of deep rTMS on executive functioning in patients with peripheral neuropathic pain, in a randomized, double-blind crossover trial.

Associations between cognitive test scores and pain tolerance: The Tromsø study.

Objectives: Previous studies have suggested that experimental pain sensitivity is associated with cognitive function. The aim of this study is to assess this relationship in a large population-based sample.

Methods: We included 5,753 participants (aged 40-84 years) from the seventh wave of the population-based Tromsø Study who had been examined with cognitive tests and experimental pain assessments, and for whom information on covariates were available.

Cosmetic surgery and associated chronic postsurgical pain: A cross-sectional study from Norway.

Objectives: Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is a common postoperative sequela. Despite the increasing popularity of cosmetic surgeries, there is a notable lack of research on CPSP in this context, with existing studies focusing on breast surgeries only. To address existing gaps in knowledge, the objective of the present study was to investigate the self-reported prevalence of cosmetic surgery and associated CPSP among Norwegian adults.

Associations of long-term clinical recovery and improved quality of life across ICD-11 chronic pain categories in a real-world registry study.

Background: There is little knowledge of what factors are needed for successful chronic pain management. We aim to identify psychosocial and treatment predictors of clinical recovery and improved quality of life (QOL) at 12-month follow-up across three chronic pain groups, based on the International Classification of Diseases-11: neuropathic pain, secondary non-neuropathic pain, and primary pain. Furthermore, we investigate baseline differences across diagnostic groups.

Epidemiology of classic psychedelic substances: results from a Norwegian internet convenience sample.

Objective: In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in investigating the use of classic psychedelics such as psilocybin and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in the treatment of mental disorders and substance use disorders. However, knowledge about the epidemiology of classic psychedelics in the Nordic countries is limited.

Methods: We recruited adult, Norwegian participants who have had a memorable experience after taking a classic psychedelic substance.

Stress specifically deteriorates working memory in peripheral neuropathic pain and fibromyalgia.

This study aimed to explore the influence of chronic stress, measured through hair cortisol, on executive functions in individuals with chronic pain. We expected that there would be significant differences in chronic stress and executive functioning between pain patients and healthy controls, as well as between primary and secondary pain classifications. We also hypothesized that hair cortisol concentration was predictive of worse performance on tests of executive functions, controlling for objective and subjective covariates.

Can cognitive inflexibility reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression? Promoting the structural nested mean model in psychotherapy research.

Objective: To estimate the causal effect of executive functioning on the remission of depression and anxiety symptoms in an observational dataset from a vocational rehabilitation program. It is also an aim to promote a method from the causal inference literature and to illustrate its value in this setting.

Method: With longitudinal (four-time points over 13 months) data from four independent sites, we compiled a dataset with 390 participants.

A cross-sectional study of fear of surgery in female breast cancer patients: Prevalence, severity, and sources, as well as relevant differences among patients experiencing high, moderate, and low fear of surgery.

Background: Fear of surgery has been associated with more postoperative pain, disability, and a lower quality of life among patients undergoing various surgical procedures. While qualitative studies indicate breast cancer patients to be afraid of surgery, detailed quantitative analyses are lacking. The present research aimed at investigating the prevalence, severity, and sources of fear of surgery in this patient group and to compare patients reporting different degrees of such fear.

Acute and subacute postsurgical pain in women with breast cancer: incidence and associations with biopsychosocial predictors-a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Women who undergo breast cancer surgery risk suffering from postsurgical pain long after their surgery. Still, research on postsurgical pain in the subacute phase has been neglected.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the incidence, intensity, unpleasantness, and presurgical predictors of acute and subacute postsurgical pain after breast cancer surgery.

Meditative-based diaphragmatic breathing vs. vagus nerve stimulation in the treatment of fibromyalgia-A randomized controlled trial: Body vs. machine.

Importance: Vagus nerve innervation electrical stimulation and meditative-based diaphragmatic breathing may be promising treatment avenues for fibromyalgia.

Objective: Explore and compare the treatment effectiveness of active and sham transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) and meditative-based diaphragmatic breathing (MDB) for fibromyalgia.

Design: Participants enrolled from March 2019-October 2020 and randomly assigned to active tVNS ( = 28), sham tVNS ( = 29), active MDB ( = 29), or sham MDB ( = 30).

Pre- and post-operative psychological interventions to prevent pain and fatigue after breast cancer surgery (PREVENT): Protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer type among women worldwide with over a million new cases each year. More than 40% of these women will struggle with chronic pain and fatigue after surgery, regardless of surgical procedure. These consequences are detrimental and result in distress and disability, including work disability.

Coping expectancies and disability across the new ICD-11 chronic pain categories: A large-scale registry study.

Background: Recently, a new classification system for chronic pain was included in the 11th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). This study aims to investigate how expectancies of coping, that is pain catastrophizing and general self-efficacy, are associated with ICD-11 chronic pain categories in a large pain clinic population. Furthermore, we investigate how coping expectancies are associated with pain-related disability, cross-sectionally and longitudinally across the novel pain classifications.

The Individual Placement and Support (IPS) in Pain Trial: A Randomized Controlled Trial of IPS for Patients with Chronic Pain Conditions.

Objectives: Although complex pain conditions require an interdisciplinary approach, employment services are rarely provided in pain centers. Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an effective approach to increase work participation among patients with severe mental illness, and recent evidence suggests that this method can be successfully repurposed for new target groups. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of IPS integrated with interdisciplinary treatment as usual (TAU) for patients with chronic pain in a tertiary pain center.

The indirect impact of heart rate variability on cold pressor pain tolerance and intensity through psychological distress in individuals with chronic pain: the Tromsø Study.

Introduction: Chronic pain (CP) patients often display lower heart rate variability (HRV) and baroreceptor sensitivity (BRS), which are associated with increased evoked pain intensity and decreased pain tolerance.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test whether the association between low levels of HRV and BRS and increased evoked pain responsiveness in individuals with CP is mediated by psychological distress and whether this mediation is sex dependent.

Methods: The sample consisted of 877 participants in Wave 6 of the Tromsø population study who reported clinically meaningful CP.

Perceived Injustice in Patients With Chronic Pain: Prevalence, Relevance, and Associations With Long-Term Recovery and Deterioration.

The Injustice Experience Questionnaire (IEQ) assesses the degree to which chronic pain sufferers perceive injustice in relation to their pain. The aim of the current study was to assess the prevalence and relevance of the IEQ and its association to perceived recovery and deterioration in a naturalistic pain clinic population. Data was obtained from the Oslo University Hospital's Pain Registry.

Translation and validation of the Norwegian version of the Injustice Experience Questionnaire.

Objectives: Perceived injustice is a theoretical construct comprising elements of loss, attribution of blame, and sense of unfairness. Patients with chronic pain often report high levels of perceived injustice, which can have negative impact on physiological and psychosocial aspects and treatment outcome. The Injustice Experience Questionnaire (IEQ) is a self-report 12-item questionnaire that shows good reliability and validity in patients with chronic pain.

Clinical Hypnosis in Medical Care: A Mixed-Method Feasibility Study.

Background: Preoperative hypnosis has shown promising effects in controlling side effects from breast cancer surgery, but the feasibility and effects are largely unknown outside the US.

Methods: A mixed-methods approach was applied involving a large-scale population survey and a small-scale pilot study. The survey assessed attitudes toward hypnosis in a representative sample from the general population (n = 1049), while the pilot study involved interviews with 5 women who received hypnosis prior to mastectomy/lumpectomy.

Associations between workplace bullying and later benefit recipiency among workers with common mental disorders.

Objective: In this study, we examined exposure to workplace bullying as a predictor of registry-based benefit recipiency among workers struggling with work participation due to common mental disorders. Further, we examined if the experience of receiving social support moderated the association between workplace bullying and benefit recipiency.

Design: Secondary analyses of a randomized controlled trial.

What Does CATS Have to Do With Cancer? The Cognitive Activation Theory of Stress (CATS) Forms the SURGE Model of Chronic Post-surgical Pain in Women With Breast Cancer.

Chronic post-surgical pain (CPSP) represents a highly prevalent and significant clinical problem. Both major and minor surgeries entail risks of developing CPSP, and cancer-related surgery is no exception. As an example, more than 40% of women undergoing breast cancer surgery struggle with CPSP years after surgery.

Comparing objective cognitive impairments in patients with peripheral neuropathic pain or fibromyalgia.

Existing studies on cognitive impairments in chronic pain do not investigate peripheral neuropathic pain (PNP) or compare pain conditions in a satisfactory manner. Here we aimed to compare executive dysfunctions in PNP patients with fibromyalgia (FM) and healthy controls (HC). Patients who self-reported cognitive impairments were assessed according to criteria for PNP or FM.

MINDflex Training for Cognitive Flexibility in Chronic Pain: A Randomized, Controlled Cross-Over Trial.

Impairments in executive functioning are prevalent in chronic pain conditions, with cognitive inflexibility being the most frequently reported. The current randomized, cross-over trial, piloted a computerized cognitive training (CCT) program based on Relational Frame Theory, targeting improvement in cognitive flexibility. At baseline, 73 chronic pain patients completed testing on pre-selected outcomes of executive functioning, alongside IQ measures.

Motivational nondirective resonance breathing versus transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation in the treatment of fibromyalgia: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Chronic widespread pain (CWP), including fibromyalgia (FM), affects one in every ten adults and is one of the leading causes of sick leave and emotional distress. Due to an unclear etiology and a complex pathophysiology, FM is a condition with few, if any, effective and safe treatments. However, current research within the field of vagal nerve innervation suggests psychophysiological and electrical means by which FM may be treated.

Pain psychology in the 21st century: lessons learned and moving forward.

Background and aims In the spring of 2019, Professor Steven J. Linton, the founder of the Center for Health and Medical Psychology (CHAMP) at Örebro University, Sweden, formally retired. As a tribute to his scholarly work covering decades of influence and inspiration to the field of pain psychology, the research center organized a topical conference titled "Pain in the 21st century: Where do we come from and where are we going?", which resulted in this state-of the-art synthesis.

Metacognitive Beliefs as Predictors of Return to Work After Intensive Return-to-Work Rehabilitation in Patients With Chronic Pain, Chronic Fatigue and Common Psychological Disorders: Results From a Prospective Trial.

Background: Metacognitions are associated with work status, but no research has examined to what extent metacognitions before treatment and change in metacognitions following treatment predict return to work (RTW) prospectively. The present study aims to address these two gaps in knowledge.

Methods: 212 patients on long-term sick leave (>8 weeks) with extensive fatigue, chronic pain conditions and/or mental distress received 3.