Catastrophizing Mediates the Relationship Between Pain and Quality of Life and Illness-Focused Coping for Patients...

In individuals with inflammatory bowel disease, pain is common. Alongside the experience of pain, pain catastrophizing occurs via rumination, magnification, and helplessness-this process often impacts an individual's health-related quality of life. With that said, there is a shortage of inflammatory bowel disease research examining temporal changes in the relationship between pain and health-related quality of life and potential mediators of this association. The objective of this study is to investigate the longitudinal serial mediation effects of pain catastrophizing and pain coping on the relationship between pain and health-related quality of life. An archival dataset included participants diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease recruited at the gastrointestinal tertiary care clinic at Hotel Dieu Hospital in Kingston, Ontario. Pain, health-related quality of life, pain catastrophizing, and coping were measured. Through data analysis, it was discovered that present pain predicted future pain catastrophizing, which later predicted illness-focused coping. Illness-focused coping then predicted lower levels of health-related quality of life. Overall, this study provides a perspective on the broader implication that pain catastrophizing and coping have on the experience of pain and health-related quality of life in those with inflammatory bowel disease, suggesting a starting point for clinical intervention.