A review of cognitive-behavioural methods for the treatment of chronic pain

Cognitive-behavioural methods for the treatment of chronic pain are described. They are divided into two categories. Firstly, those directly concerned with modifying pain related cognitions. These include distraction or relabelling techniques derived largely from analogue studies on experimental pain which show that various cognitive strategies can increase pain tolerance levels. Secondly, those concerned with modifying cognitive responses to stress. These include stress management techniques derived from the research on anxiety management. Outcome studies for both categories of cognitive methods and for a range of chronic pain problems are reviewed. It is concluded that although outcome studies report favourable results for cognitive methods there is a paucity of well controlled and evaluated studies.