Psychological Factors Affecting Reported Pain in Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis

Examined the extent to which psychological variables are correlated with pain reported by children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). In a hierarchical multiple regression analysis with pain as the dependent variable, four psychological measures of child and family functioning resulted in a significant increase in R2 = .31, p < .0001, after the effects of disease characteristics were considered. Greater emotional distress in the child, greater emotional distress of the mother, and greater family harmony were related to higher reported pain. Findings suggest that more attention should be given to nonpharmacological aspects of pain and pain management in children with JRA.