None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Chronic pain is one of the most common chronic conditions in Australia and the prevalence is on the rise. It is estimated that by 2050, the prevalence of chronic pain will rise to 5.23 million Australians. People with chronic pain suffer not only physically, but also financially and emotionally. One of the eight goals identified by Painaustralia in the National Strategic Action Plan for Pain Management (2021) is for “People living with pain have timely access to consumer-centered best practice pain management including self-management, early intervention strategies and interdisciplinary care and support”. Chronic pain can have a significant impact on mental health and they commonly occur together. Depression and anxiety are the most common comorbidities associated with chronic pain in Australia at 44.6%, followed by osteoarthritis and degenerative arthritis (29.3%) and hypertension(25.1%). Nearly half of the patients with chronic pain presenting for treatment suffer from major depression. Major depression in people with chronic pain often leads to reduced functioning, poorer treatment response, and increased healthcare costs. Breathing intervention is an effective self-management for a range of medical and mental health conditions. To date, there has not been a reported randomized control trial examining the effectiveness of a breathing intervention for adults with a range of chronic pain types. This research aims to examine the efficacy of telehealth-based group breathing intervention on patient-reported outcomes in patients with chronic pain as compared to usual care. The research question for this trial is “In people living with chronic pain, what is the effect of a telehealth-based group intervention on mood, pain intensity and interference, catastrophising, and self-efficacy compared with no breathing intervention within a 12-month period?”. The hypothesis of this randomised control trial is “telehealth-based group breathing intervention is beneficial for improving patient-reported outcomes in adults living with chronic pain”. Once consented to participate this research, participants will be randomized to either treatment (telehealth breathing intervention group) or usual care (control group). Patient reported outcomes will be collected at baseline, 4 weeks post-initiation of treatment, 8 weeks post-initiation of treatment, and 6 months post-initiation of treatment.
Interventions
The telehealth breathing training group consists of 6 sessions over an 8-week period delivered via ZOOM or PEXIP (videoconferencing platform for NSW Health). Each breathing intervention group will have a minimum of 4 participants and no more than 8 participants to ensure individualised feedback is provided. All breathing intervention groups will receive the same intervention program. Each session will be co-run by the principal researcher and one of the associate researchers when feasible. Sess
The telehealth breathing training group consists of 6 sessions over an 8-week period delivered via ZOOM or PEXIP (videoconferencing platform for NSW Health). Each breathing intervention group will have a minimum of 4 participants and no more than 8 participants to ensure individualised feedback is provided. All breathing intervention groups will receive the same intervention program. Each session will be co-run by the principal researcher and one of the associate researchers when feasible. Sessions will be 45 to 60 minutes each in duration. The breathing intervention consists of education focusing on the relationship between breathing, chronic pain, and the autonomic nervous system. Breathing intervention will consist of practicing diaphragmatic breathing and exploring a range of breathing patterns. Participants will engage in group breathing practice and receive feedback for their techniques. Home practice materials in the form of written materials will be made available to the patients at the end of each session. These home practice materials about the breathing techniques and patterns discussed will be designed specifically for this study. Participants will be expected to perform home practice at least 5 days a week. The duration will be at the participant's discretion but recommended to be more than 10 minutes each time. Participant's adherence to the intervention will be monitored via the use of session attendance sheet, and discussion about home practice at each session when appropriate.
Sponsors
University of Newcastle
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
• Patients with non-malignant chronic pain for >3 months confirmed by a medical practitioner or chronic pain specialist. • 18 years or above, • moderately depression or moderately anxiety on DASS21 • Moderate pain severity defined as an average severity score of 5 or more on the Brief Pain Inventory • Have access to stable internet connection and electronic device with teleconferencing capabilities or able to travel to Western NSW Health Community Health Centre to access telehealth facilities, • Sufficient English skills to participate in the group intervention and interview.
Exclusion criteria
• Individuals with spinal cord injury, • Have a history of central nervous system diseases such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, • Have known cognitive impairment and impaired memory that will preclude participation, • Individuals who are currently participating in self-management or other intervention that emphasizes on breathing techniques such as yoga, and meditation, • Have previous exposure to breathing training programs.
Outcome results
None listed