Music Can Mean Less Pain

Focusing on music can distract people who have significant anxiety about pain enough that they feel the pain less acutely, according to a recent study done at the University of Utah Pain Research Center.  The study found that pain was reduced as the demands of focusing on the task rose.

Researchers had 153 volunteers concentrate on following a melody so they could identify the tones that stood out.  During the session small pain shocks were administered through fingertip electrodes.  The authors explained that the effects of the music resulted from competition with the participants’ pain pathways.

Interestingly, those who had registered the most anxiety about pain became more absorbed in the task and were more likely to experience reduced perception of pain.  The study authors suggested that, “Clinicians should consider patients’ personality characteristics when recommending behavioral interventions like music listening for pain relief.”

Pathways has volunteers that can provide music sessions to our hospice patients as part of our Integrative Therapies program of care for body and soul.

The results were published in the December, 2011 issue of the Journal of Pain.

Spiritual Pain in Advanced Cancer: Symptom for Hospice Chaplains to Address

Quality of Life Can Improve

A vast majority of advanced cancer patients receiving palliative care consider themselves spiritual and religious.  But spiritual pain is still common and is linked to lower quality of life.  This is another place in which the holistic hospice approach to mind and body may improve life’s final stage.

A study done by the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Texas, examined the frequency and intensity of spirituality, religiosity, and spiritual pain, and how spiritual pain was associated with symptom expression, coping, and spiritual quality of life.

Researchers interviewed 100 patients with advanced cancer and had them complete questionnaires assessing their symptoms and ability to cope. 

Spiritual pain was reported in 44%, and was associated with lower spiritual quality of life. Patients with spiritual pain reported that it contributed adversely to their physical/emotional symptoms. There was a trend toward increased depression, anxiety, anorexia, and drowsiness among patients with spiritual pain, although this may not have been significant after corrections.

Every Pathways Hospice patient can have visits from extremely well qualified spiritual care counselors to give unbiased spiritual or religious support to patient or family members, to identify and resolve spiritual concerns, to explore the meaning of life, to administer sacraments, or to be a warm listening presence when needed.

This study can be found at J Pain Symptom Manage.  2011; 41(6):986-94 (ISSN: 1873-6513).

Power of Positive Thinking

A series of lab experiments conducted in Europe found that those patients who expect their analgesics to work get relief from their pain.  Those who were told their painkillers had been discontinued had more pain, even though they were actually continuing to receive the same dose. A patient’s expectations about the effectiveness of a pain drug appear to override the properties of the drug itself.

Scans Illustrate Phenomenon

Patient MRI scans conducted during the research show that, “volunteers had more activity in areas of the brain involved in memory and anxiety when they were expecting pain versus when they were expecting relief.  When the volunteers were told the drug would work, there was a boost in brain activity in areas associated with fighting pain,” says study author Dr. Ulrike Bingel, from the department of neurology at the University of Hamburg Medical Center in Germany.

Although the placebo effect is well documented, there is less research on the “nocebo” effect, in which patients have negative experiences when warned about the side effects or lack of effectiveness of a treatment, even if they are taking a placebo.

“This tells me that when we’re talking to patients and presenting therapy, the more positive we are about how the therapy is going to impact them, the better outcomes we’re going to have,” says Carla Rubingh, a pain management specialist and assistant professor of pharmacy practice at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha who was not involved in the study. 

Benefits of the Mind-Body Connection

Pathways is home to an innovative Integrative Therapies Program that includes guided imagery and meditation to help patients find comfort and relief.  Relaxation techniques use the mind-body connection to achieve relaxation. Using simple suggestions, the practitioner guides the patient or family member to make the changes they wish to achieve in their physical or emotional state. This is very effective in reducing stress and anxiety, and is helpful in pain management.

For more information about Integrative Therapies at Pathways visit our website and Integrative Therapies resource page for caregivers.