Edwards, Robert R.Hurstak, EmilyMcDonnell, Christina2021-12-202021https://hdl.handle.net/2144/43477PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to explore differences between males and females with opioid-treated chronic lower back pain in order to gain a greater understanding of how these factors may affect treatment and inform approaches to clinical care. METHODS: 175 participants who completed a baseline visit for a trial comparing the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation (MM) to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for the treatment of chronic lower back pain in adults taking a moderate to high dose of opioid medication were included in the study. Participants provided demographic information, completed a series of baseline questionnaires regarding their pain, psychological status, and medication use, and underwent assessments of pain sensitivity and pain modulation. RESULTS: Analysis by t-test demonstrated that women reported greater pain intensity and pain interference than their male counterparts. Women also reported lower pressure pain thresholds and greater sensitivity to mechanical pinprick stimuli. The association between pain intensity and pain interference was found to differ significantly by sex, with pain interference more strongly associated with increased levels of pain intensity in males compared to females. CONCLUSIONS: In accordance with the available literature, women reported greater pain intensity, pain interference, and pain sensitivity than male participants. The weaker association between pain intensity and pain interference in women suggests that pain interference may be more mechanistically complex in this group, possibly with a greater role of psychosocial and other biological factors. Overall, these findings lend further support to the theory that certain biological and psychological factors which are known to differ between men and women appear to mediate the individual experience of pain.en-USHealth sciencesBackChronicGenderPainSexThesis/Dissertation2021-11-30