Psychological therapies delivered remotely for the management of chronic pain (excluding headache) in adults

A Tale of Two Treatments: A Randomised Controlled Trial of Mindfulness or Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Delivered Online for People with Rheumatoid Arthritis

INTRODUCTION

This study aimed to determine the relative efficacy of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) or cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) in comparison to a waitlist control (WLC) for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Participants completed assessments before and after treatment and at 6-month follow-up.

METHODS

Two hundred and sixty-nine participants with RA were recruited and randomised in a 2:2:1 ratio to MBSR:CBT:WLC. Participants completed a semi-structured clinical interview for depression and were stratified for history of recurrent depression. We measured the primary outcome of pain interference, as well as pain severity, depression, anxiety, functional ability, and fear of progression. We predicted that MBSR and CBT would result in improvements compared to WLC. We also predicted that those with a history of recurrent depression would benefit more from MBSR than CBT for depression.

RESULTS

MBSR and CBT were equally efficacious in reducing pain interference compared to WLC. Similar results were found for depression. MBSR demonstrated superior outcomes to CBT for fear of progression at post-treatment and functional ability at 6-month follow-up. CBT only was better than WLC for pain severity at 6-month follow-up. Depressive status did not moderate the efficacy of treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

MBSR and CBT resulted in statistically and clinically significant changes in pain interference compared to WLC. MBSR was more efficacious than CBT for functional ability and fear of progression, while CBT showed superiority for pain severity. The effect sizes were comparable to those achieved with face-to-face interventions, confirming both online treatments are effective for people with RA.

Randomized controlled trial investigating the effectiveness of a multimodal mobile application for the treatment of chronic pain

Background

Until recently, treatments for chronic pain commonly relied on in-person interventions, and despite more hybrid care options today, capacity for delivery remains challenged. Digital programs focusing on the psychosocial aspects of pain may provide low-barrier alternatives.

Aims

Through a randomized controlled trial, we investigated the effectiveness of a multimodal mobile application.

Methods

Participants (n = 198; 82% women, mean age = 46.7 [13.1] years; mean pain duration 13.6 [11.2] years) with nonmalignant chronic pain were randomized to either a 6-week intervention (n = 98) or a wait-listed usual care group (n = 100). The intervention involved regular engagement with a user-guided mobile application (Curable Inc.) informed by the biopsychosocial model of pain that included pain education, meditation, cognitive behavioral therapy, and expressive writing. The co-primary outcomes were pain severity and interference at 6 weeks.

Results

We observed significant improvements in the intervention group compared to the control group with estimated changes of -0.67 (95% confidence interval [CI] -1.04 to -0.29, P < .001, d = 0.43) and -0.60 (95% CI -1.18 to -0.03, P = .04, d = 0.27) for pain severity and interference, respectively. There were significant improvements across secondary outcomes (Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System pain interference; pain catastrophizing; anxiety, depression; stress). Frequency of app use was correlated with improved pain interference (P < .001) and pain catastrophizing (P = 0.018), and changes from baseline persisted in the intervention group at 12 weeks (P < .05).

Conclusions

A short-term mobile app intervention resulted in significant improvements across physical and mental health outcomes compared to wait-listed usual care.

Telehealth and Virtual Reality Technologies in Chronic Pain Management: A Narrative Review

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This review provides medical practitioners with an overview of the present and emergent roles of telehealth and associated virtual reality (VR) applications in chronic pain (CP) management, particularly in the post-COVID-19 healthcare landscape.

RECENT FINDINGS

Accumulated evidence points to the efficacy of now well-established telehealth modalities, such as videoconferencing, short messaging service (SMS), and mobile health (mHealth) applications in complementing remote CP care. More recently, and although still in early phases of clinical implementation, a wide range of VR-based interventions have demonstrated potential for improving the asynchronous remote management of CP. Additionally, VR-associated technologies at the leading edge of science and engineering, such as VR-assisted biofeedback, haptic technology, high-definition three-dimensional (HD3D) conferencing, VR-enabled interactions in a Metaverse, and the use of wearable monitoring devices, herald a new era for remote, synchronous patient-physician interactions. These advancements hold the potential to facilitate remote physical examinations, personalized remote care, and innovative interventions such as ultra-realistic biofeedback. Despite the promise of VR-associated technologies, several limitations remain, including the paucity of robust long-term effectiveness data, heterogeneity of reported pain-related outcomes, challenges with scalability and insurance coverage, and demographic-specific barriers to patient acceptability. Future research efforts should be directed toward mitigating these limitations to facilitate the integration of telehealth-associated VR into the conventional management of CP. Despite ongoing barriers to widespread adoption, recent evidence suggests that VR-based interventions hold an increasing potential to complement and enhance the remote delivery of CP care.