A comprehensive pain management programme comprising educational, cognitive and behavioural interventions for neuropathic pain following spinal cord injury

Objective: To assess whether a comprehensive multidisciplinary pain management programme could contribute to improvement regarding sleep quality, mood, life satisfaction, health-related quality of life, sense of coherence and pain for patients with a spinal cord injury and neuropathic pain. Design: A prospective intervention study. Patients: Twenty-seven patients with spinal cord injury and neuropathic pain participated in a pain management programme in parallel with 11 patients in a control group. Methods: A comprehensive pain management programme comprising educational, cognitive, and behavioural interventions was created for patients with spinal cord injury and neuropathic pain. The pain management programme consisted of 20 sessions over a 10-week period and included educational sessions, behavioural therapy, relaxation, stretching, light exercise and body awareness training. All patients were followed-up 3, 6 and 12 months after completion of the programme. Results: At the 12-month follow-up, levels of anxiety and depression in the treatment group decreased compared with baseline values, and a tendency towards better quality of sleep was seen. In comparison with the control group, patients in the treatment group improved regarding sense of coherence and depression. Conclusion: This study implies that a multidimensional pain management programme can be a valuable complement in the treatment of spinal cord injured patients with neuropathic pain.