Comparison of pain burden and psychological factors in Brazilian women living with HIV and chronic neuropathic or nociceptive pain : an exploratory study

Psychological factors including pain catastrophizing and resilience associate with adjustment and quality of life in people living with chronic pain. Nevertheless, their presentation among females living with HIV and chronic pain has been poorly studied. Given that chronic pain in those living with HIV might occur due to different mechanisms (nociceptive or neuropathic), we hypothesize that the associated psychological states could also differ between these groups. We aimed to compare pain frequency and interference, psychological factors and sleep quality between females living with chronic nociceptive or neuropathic pain. Also, we explored correlations between psychological factors, pain severity and interference in females living with HIV and chronic pain. We performed a cross sectional study assessing females living with HIV and chronic pain, and compared it with a female HIV-positive, painfree control sample in Brazil. To discriminate the most likely underlying mechanism for the chronic pain, we applied the Leeds Assessment for Neuropathic Signs and Symptoms (LANSS). Forty-nine females living with HIV and chronic pain were assessed, and divided in control (n = 12), nociceptive (n = 10) and neuropathic pain (n = 27) groups. Using validated scales, their pain catastrophizing, resilience, depression, anxiety and sleep disorders were assessed between May 2014 and August 2015. Compared to controls, females living with HIV and neuropathic chronic pain had higher pain frequency (p<0.001), interference on activities (p = 0.002), interference with emotions (p<0.001), catastrophizing (p