Table 2.
Demographic and clinical characteristics, overall, by average pain severity
| Characteristic | Overall (n = 100) | Mild (0–3) (n = 14) | Moderate (4–6) (n = 48) | Severe (7–10) (n = 35) | P-value* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years | 0.0037** | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 54.9 (12.87) | 63.6 (11.09) | 56.2 (12.49) | 49.4 (11.75) | |
| Gender, n (%) | 0.7263 | ||||
| Female | 53 (53.0) | 7 (50.0) | 23 (47.9) | 20 (57.1) | |
| Race, n (%) | 0.0029** | ||||
| Missing | 2 (2.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 2 (5.7) | |
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 3 (3.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.1) | 2 (5.7) | |
| Asian | 1 (1.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.9) | |
| Black or African American | 3 (3.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (8.6) | |
| Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | |
| White | 85 (85.0) | 14 (100.0) | 47 (97.9) | 21 (60.0) | |
| Multiracial | 3 (3.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (8.6) | |
| Other | 3 (3.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (8.6) | |
| Education level, n (%) | 0.3824 | ||||
| Missing | 4 (4.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.1) | 3 (8.6) | |
| Up to high school/GED | 30 (30.0) | 3 (21.4) | 13 (27.1) | 13 (37.1) | |
| Beyond high school | 66 (66.0) | 11 (78.6) | 34 (70.8) | 19 (54.3) | |
| Employment status, n (%) | 0.0002** | ||||
| Employed for pay | 22 (22.0) | 4 (28.6) | 13 (27.1) | 5 (14.3) | |
| Disableda | 48 (48.0) | 1 (7.1) | 23 (47.9) | 22 (62.9) | |
| Retired | 18 (18.0) | 7 (50.0) | 9 (18.8) | 1 (2.9) | |
| Unemployed | 8 (8.0) | 1 (7.1) | 3 (6.3) | 4 (11.4) | |
| Other | 4 (4.0) | 1 (7.1) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (8.6) | |
| BPI-SF Pain Severity Index | NA | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 5.6 (2.09) | 2.0 (1.08) | 5.2 (0.80) | 7.7 (0.98) | |
| NeP prescription coverage, n (%) | 0.0845 | ||||
| Missing | 1 (1.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.1) | 0 (0.0) | |
| No | 14 (14.0) | 1 (7.1) | 4 (8.3) | 9 (25.7) | |
| Yes | 85 (85.0) | 13 (92.9) | 43 (89.6) | 26 (74.3) | |
| Time since trauma/surgery, n (%) | 0.4076 | ||||
| 6 months to 1 year | 3 (3.0) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.1) | 1 (2.9) | |
| 1 to 2 years | 7 (7.0) | 0 (0.0) | 6 (12.5) | 1 (2.9) | |
| >2 years | 90 (90.0) | 14 (100.0) | 41 (85.4) | 33 (94.3) | |
| Time since NeP diagnosis, monthsb | 0.9083 | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 107.8 (85.59) | 103.5 (80.37) | 116.4 (99.37) | 98.8 (67.21) | |
| Time since first experienced NeP symptoms, monthsc | 0.2786 | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 117.5 (98.88) | 87.0 (78.70) | 128.9 (101.39) | 115.4 (104.49) |
Notes:
P-values are from the Kruskal–Wallis test for continuous variables and the Fisher’s exact test for the categorical variables; mild versus moderate versus severe;
statistically significant at the 0.05 level;
disabled/on disability, defined as individuals granted disabled status by the US government and receiving monthly disability payments from the Social Security Administration;
reported on the clinical case report form based on physician review of subject’s medical chart;
reported on the subject questionnaire based on subject’s recall. Mild, moderate, and severe classification was based on the BPI-SF average pain severity score. Three subjects did not respond to all required items needed to calculate a BPI-SF average pain severity score and thus were not included in any analysis by pain severity category.
Abbreviations: n, number; SD, standard deviation; GED, general education development; BPI-SF, Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form; NA, not applicable; NeP, neuropathic pain; BPI-SF, Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form.