Opportunities for chronic pain self-management: core psychological principles and neurobiological underpinnings

Key Points

1. Core psychological principles can be used to assist in the self-management of chronic pain.

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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Given the global crisis of untreated pain and the over-reliance on opioid analgesia, other interventions are required. Recently, a variety of interventions have emerged designed to promote chronic pain self-management. These include therapies delivered via books, online apps, websites or virtual reality at home.

This three-part review paper explores psychological interventions that create opportunities for chronic pain self-management. Interventions that have utility across multiple health care settings and at home were a focus. Firstly, the different types of chronic pain and the associated psychoneurobiological mechanisms gained from brain neuroimaging were described. Secondly, psychological interventions focused on pain self-management were explored. Third is the underlying principles of successful pain treatment.

The aim was to provide possible pathways to implementation with emphasis on how non psychologist health care workers can shift patient trajectories favourably.

A variety of interventions have emerged designed to promote chronic pain self-management.

The potential of functional brain neuroimaging technology to assist our diagnosis, prognostication and understanding of the bespoke mechanisms underlying a patient’s pain experience are emerging.

METHODS

This was a narrative expert review based primarily on meta-analysis. Databases such as PubMed, EMBASE, Google Scholar, Scopus and Ovid were searched. Cochrane meta-analysis and reviews directly relating to pain were given priority.

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