The Role of Health Locus of Control in Pain Intensity Outcome of Conservatively and Operatively Treated Hand Surgery Patients

Purpose Psychological factors have shown to be associated with treatment outcomes in hand injury patients. This study aimed to investigate the role of health locus of control (HLOC) and its dimensions internal, social-external, and fatalistic-external HLOC in treatment outcomes of hand injury patients. Method One hundred thirty-two consecutive patients of a tertiary center for hand surgery undergoing treatment for acute hand injury or degenerative hand problems were included in this study. Pretreatment levels of depression, anxiety, HLOC, and pain intensity were measured, along with pain intensity levels at 4-month follow-up. Hierarchical regression analyses were calculated to test for moderation effects of the HLOC dimensions on the relationship between pretreatment and follow-up pain intensity. Results Controlling for age, gender, treatment modality, source of hand pain, and depressive symptoms, a moderation effect emerged ( β = − 0.16, p