Approaches to psychotherapy for chronic musculoskeletal pain

Abstract

The management of patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain is an important biomedical problem due to the prevalence of this pathology and its resistance to therapeutic interventions. Psychosocial factors play a significant role in the formation and maintenance of chronic pain. In this regard, psychotherapeutic assistance is very important in the management of patients with chronic pain within the framework of multidisciplinary treatment. This review discusses the main psychotherapeutic approaches that have been used for chronic musculoskeletal pain: cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness therapy, psychoanalysis, hypnosis. General information about the essence of the discussed methods and the evidence base for their use in chronic pain are presented. A significant effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy and techniques based on mindfulness therapy has been demonstrated.

Keywords

• chronic pain
• biopsychosocial model
• psychotherapy
• cognitive behavioral therapy
• psychoanalysis
• hypnosis
• awareness