Unit:
ΠΜΣ Διασυνδετική Ψυχιατρική: Απαρτιωμένη Φροντίδα Σωματικής και Ψυχικής ΥγείαςLibrary of the School of Health Sciences
Author:
Kontokostas Stefanos
Supervisors info:
Εμμ. Ρίζος, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής, Ιατρική, ΕΚΠΑ
Χρ. Χριστοδούλου, Αναπλ. Καθηγητής, Ιατρική, ΕΚΠΑ
Π. Φερεντίνος, Επίκ. Καθηγητής, Ιατρική, ΕΚΠΑ
Original Title:
Η αντίληψη του πόνου σε ασθενείς με σχιζοφρένεια - ανασκόπηση
Translated title:
Pain perception in schizophrenic patients - review
Summary:
Introduction: Schizophrenia often co-occurs with various psychiatric and medical conditions which could present with pain. Pain perception in schizophrenic patients as well as alterations in pain dimensions (sensory – affective – cognitive) in schizophrenia have been studied for many years with important pathophysiologic and clinical findings.
Purpose / Method: This is a review of published studies on pain perception in patients with schizophrenia. PubMed and Google Scholar were searched using the keywords “schizophrenia” and “pain”. As a result 43 studies were selected, analyzed and reviewed.
Results: Initial observational studies only reported that schizophrenic patients experienced pain associated with various medical conditions, differently from the general population. Subsequent comparative studies on the perception of painful stimuli reported alterations in pain threshold in schizophrenic patients and diminished response to such stimuli. Two meta-analyses also support these findings. Some symptom dimensions of schizophrenia (positive, negative, cognitive) have also been correlated with pain perception. Several theories have tried to shed light on the pathophysiology of pain perception in schizophrenia: alteration in central sensitization to pain, glutamatergic theory of schizophrenia, dopaminergic theory and alteration in endogenous opioids system.
Discussion / Conclusion: The available data suggest that schizophrenic patients show diminished response to painful stimuli and have increased pain threshold. However these findings do not apply to the perception of clinical pain in schizophrenia. The findings on neurotransmitters and genetic factors involved are inconclusive so far. Further research is needed in order to provide insight into the pathophysiology of pain and of schizophrenia.
Main subject category:
Health Sciences
Keywords:
Schizophrenia, Pain
Number of references:
112
