Written education about central sensitization and pain physiology alone is insufficient. Nevertheless, an educational booklet about pain physiology is highly appreciated
by fibromyalgia patients (Ittersum et al., in press), indicating that it can be used in conjunction with face-to-face educational meetings. From the available evidence it is concluded that face-to-face sessions of pain physiology education, in conjunction with written educational material, are effective for changing pain perceptions and health status in patients with various chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders, including those with chronic low back pain, chronic whiplash, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. Practice guidelines on how to apply pain physiology education in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain are provided below (and are summarized in Fig. 1). Prior Depsipeptide chemical structure to commencing pain physiology education, it is important firstly to ascertain that pain physiology education is indicated in the chronic pain patient. Pain
physiology education is indicated when: 1) the clinical picture is characterized and dominated by central sensitization; and 2) maladaptive pain cognitions, illness perceptions or coping strategies are present. Both indications are prerequisites for commencing pain physiology education. Some (acute) musculoskeletal pain patients may not fulfil these requirements PD0332991 datasheet initially, but will do so later on during their course of treatment (e.g. a patient receiving physiotherapy for an acute GBA3 muscle strain experiencing a whiplash trauma). To examine whether central sensitization is present, clinicians can use guidelines for the recognition of central sensitization in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain (Nijs et al., 2010). In the assessment of illness perceptions patients must be asked about their perceptions
about the cause of pain, the consequences, the treatment and the timeline of pain. Maladaptive pain cognitions include ruminating about pain, and hypervigilance to somatic signs, each of which can be easily assessed with short self-reported measures with excellent psychometric properties (e.g. the Pain Catastrophizing Scale1, Pain Vigilance and Awareness Questionnaire2, etc.) (Sullivan et al., 1995, Van Damme et al., 2002 and Kraaimaat and Evers, 2003). Likewise, illness perception can be questioned or can be assessed by use of the brief Illness Perception Questionnaire3 (Broadbent et al., 2006). This information addressing pain perceptions and coping strategies should be used by the therapist to tailor the individual education sessions (remember that pain physiology education aims to reconceptualise pain). It is essential for clinicians to explain the treatment rationale and discuss the practical issues of the treatment with the patient. In case of central sensitization and chronic musculoskeletal pain, explaining the treatment rationale is of prime importance. Basically, patients should understand the mechanism of central sensitization.