Caregiver-Reported Pain Management Practices for Individuals With Cerebral Palsy

Objective: To investigate types and intensity of pain experienced by individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) and common pain-relieving approaches used by caregivers. Design: The approach was cross-sectional, using standardized interviews. Setting: Individuals with CP were recruited from a specialty health care hospital. Participants: Eighty-six individuals (N=86; mean age, 17.2 years; male, 58%) with CP and complex communication needs participated. Interventions: Not applicable. Main Outcome Measures: Pain type, mean pain intensity (MPI) (graded on a scale of 0=no pain to 10=worst possible pain), and mean pain relief (MPR) (graded on a scale of 0=intervention did not help at all to 10=intervention completely relieved pain) were assessed by caregiver report as part of the Dalhousie Pain Interview for each type of pain experienced in the previous 7 days. Results: Caregivers reported that 58 participants (67%) had experienced pain in the previous 7 days. MPI was 7.7±1.8 when the pain was worst in the previous 7 days. The 2 most common types of pain included musculoskeletal pain (n=70) and gastrointestinal pain (n=11). The most frequent treatment to relieve musculoskeletal pain was changing positions (n=27, MPI=5.1±2.3, MPR=6.6±2.1), medication (n=25, MPI=7.4±1.6, MPR=5.3±1.9), and massage (n=19, MPI=6.7±1.9, MPR=5.2±1.7). To treat gastrointestinal pain, medication was typically used (n=4, MPI=4.8±1.4, MPR=5.5±1.0), although no treatment was just as common (n=4, MPI=4.5±2.3). Conclusions: The results indicate that musculoskeletal pain is prevalent in individuals with CP, and changing physical positions and providing medication are strategies most used by caregivers.