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. 2021 May 5;6(1):e926.
doi: 10.1097/PR9.0000000000000926. eCollection 2021.

Psychological aspects of pain prevention

Emma Fisher  1   2 , Christopher Eccleston  1   3
Affiliations

Psychological aspects of pain prevention

Emma Fisher et al. Pain Rep. .

Abstract

How to prevent the onset, maintenance, or exacerbation of pain is a major focus of clinical pain science. Pain prevention can be distinctly organised into primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. Primary prevention describes avoiding hurt or pain, secondary prevention describes reducing pain when pain is unavoidable, and tertiary prevention describes preventing or reducing ongoing negative consequences such as high functional disability or distress due to chronic pain. Each poses separate challenges where unique psychological factors will play a role. In this short review article, we highlight psychological factors important to primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention and provide direction for the field. We present 2 case studies on secondary prevention in children and adolescents and tertiary prevention in adults with chronic pain. Finally, we provide research directions for progression in this field, highlighting the importance of clear theoretical direction, the identification of risk factors for those most likely to develop pain, and the importance of treatment.

Keywords: Cognitive behavioural therapy; Evidence; Pain; Prevention; Psychological.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.Sponsorships or competing interests that may be relevant to content are disclosed at the end of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Examples for prevention of primary, secondary, and tertiary pain with an emphasis on psychological strategies.
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