Do pain patients at high risk for substance misuse experience more pain? A longitudinal outcomes study.

OBJECTIVES: The Screener and Opioid Assessment of Pain Patients (SOAPP v.1) has been shown to be a reliable measure of risk potential for substance misuse and to correlate with a history of substance abuse, legal problems, craving, smoking, and mood disorders among chronic pain patients. The aim of this study was to examine differences over time on a number of measures among chronic pain patients who were classified as high or low risk for opioid misuse based on scores on the SOAPP.
METHODS: From an initial sample of one hundred thirty-four participants (N = 134), one hundred and ten (N = 110) completed the SOAPP and were grouped as high or low risk for misuse of medication based on SOAPP scores of > or =7. All subjects were asked to complete baseline measures and in-clinic monthly diaries of their pain, mood, activity interference, medication, and side effects over a 10-month study period.
RESULTS: The results showed that although those who were classified as high-risk for opioid misuse reported significantly higher levels of pain intensity, activity interference, pain catastrophizing, disability, and depressed mood at baseline (P < 0.05), only pain intensity ratings were found to differentiate groups over time (P < 0.01). These results were unrelated to perceived helpfulness of pain treatment.
CONCLUSIONS: Differences in subjective pain intensity were found between those who are high risk for opioid misuse compared with those at low risk for medication misuse, implying that higher-risk patients may experience more subjective pain. Consequently, these patients may be more challenging to treat.