The role of quantitative sensory testing in the prediction of chronic pain

Quantitative sensory testing (QST) is a formal variant of a time-honoured clinical examination technique in neurology, the sensory examination. Prototypical QST profiles have been found in human surrogate models of peripheral sensitization, central sensitization, and deafferentation. Probabilistic sorting of individual patients to any combination of these profiles has been developed, and there is emerging evidence for the predictive value of such sensory profiles for treatment efficacy. This way, QST aids in diagnostics of individual patients and may help guide their care in the future. Deficits in dynamic QST have been proposed as predictors of chronic pain (impaired descending inhibition and delayed recovery from central sensitization). Several psychological factors had previously been found to be predictors of pain chronicity (catastrophizing, self-efficacy, and neuroticism). The relative importance of psychological vs sensory testing predictors has not been evaluated. It is likely that both will have differential roles in clinical practice.