Sleep and musculoskeletal pain in workers following a soft tissue injury

grantor: University of TorontoIn a longitudinal prospective study of 15 males (mean age = 36.7 yrs, s.d. = 9.3) with low back pain (LBP), sleep and symptoms were assessed at 6,10, 15, and 19 weeks following a work-related injury. They were compared to 9 "pain-free", age and gender comparable controls. At each session, subjects wore an actigraph and completed the Hospital Anxiety Scale, the Beck Depression Inventory, the University of Toronto Sleep Assessment Questionnaire$\sp\copyright$, the Roland Scale, and the Chronic Pain Grade. Compared to controls, workers with LBP showed greater anxiety (Hospital Anxiety Scale p = 0.02), depression (Beck Depression Inventory p = 0.03 and Somatic subscale of Beck Depression Inventory p $<$ 0.01), and self-reported sleep disturbances (Sleep Assessment Questionnaire p $<$ 0.01 and non-restorative subscale of Sleep Assessment Questionnaire p $<$ 0.01). Compared to controls, LBP subjects experienced longer awakenings (p = 0.02) and slept 38 minutes less once they returned to work (p = 0.01).M.Sc