An evaluation of the psychosocial characteristics of patients admitted to a pain clinic and their relatives

This study tested the hypothesis that as pain brings about psychosocial changes in the pain patient, it also does in those relatives dealing with and supporting the patient. In order to test the hypothesis, comparisons of psychosocial status were made among patients with chronic pain, their relatives, and a control group (individuals having no pain and no relative with a pain disorder). The study included 270 individuals separated into 3 groups: Patients admitted to the Pain Polyclinic at Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine with chronic pain (Group CP; n=77), relatives of these patients (Group R; n=98), and individuals age- and sex-matched to the relatives as a control group (Group C; n=95). The demographic values of all individuals were recorded, and psychological evaluations performed on all participants using the SCL 90 test. Somatization, anxiety, depression, interindividual sensibility, psychosis, paranoia, anger and general symptom index average scores were found to be high in Group R compared to Group C. Changes in psychosocial status were observed in pain patients and their relatives when compared to the control group. The study recommends that in addition to evaluating the psychological status of pain patients in order to provide them with psychological and medical support, relatives of these patients should also be evaluated carefully and given psychological and medical support to enable necessary diagnosis and treatment.