OBJECTIVES: Many interventions are available to manage chronic pain; understanding the durability of treatment effects may assist with treatment selection. We sought to assess which noninvasive nonpharmacological treatments for selected chronic pain conditions are associated with persistent improvement in function and pain outcomes at least 1 month after the completion of treatment.
DATA SOURCES: Electronic databases (Ovid MEDLINE®, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews) through November 2017, reference lists, and ClinicalTrials.gov.
REVIEW METHODS: Using predefined criteria, we selected randomized controlled trials of noninvasive nonpharmacological treatments for five common chronic pain conditions (chronic low back pain; chronic neck pain; osteoarthritis of the knee, hip, or hand; fibromyalgia; and tension headache) that addressed efficacy or harms compared with usual care, no treatment, waitlist, placebo, or sham intervention; compared with pharmacological therapy; or compared with exercise. Study quality was assessed, data extracted, and results summarized for function and pain. Only trials reporting results for at least 1 month post-intervention were included. We focused on the persistence of effects at short term (1 to <6 months following treatment completion), intermediate term (≥6 to <12 months), and long term (≥12 months).
RESULTS: Two hundred eighteen publications (202 trials) were included. Many included trials were small. Evidence on outcomes beyond 1 year after treatment completion was sparse. Most trials enrolled patients with moderate baseline pain intensity (e.g., >5 on a 0 to 10 point numeric rating scale) and duration of symptoms ranging from 3 months to >15 years. The most common comparison was against usual care. Chronic low back pain: At short term, massage, yoga, and psychological therapies (primarily CBT) (strength of evidence [SOE]: moderate) and exercise, acupuncture, spinal manipulation, and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (SOE: low) were associated with slight improvements in function compared with usual care or inactive controls. Except for spinal manipulation, these interventions also improved pain. Effects on intermediate-term function were sustained for yoga, spinal manipulation, multidisciplinary rehabilitation (SOE: low), and psychological therapies (SOE: moderate). Improvements in pain continued into intermediate term for exercise, massage, and yoga (moderate effect, SOE: low); mindfulness-based stress reduction (small effect, SOE: low); spinal manipulation, psychological therapies, and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (small effects, SOE: moderate). For acupuncture, there was no difference in pain at intermediate term, but a slight improvement at long term (SOE: low). Psychological therapies were associated with slightly greater improvement than usual care or an attention control on both function and pain at short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term followup (SOE: moderate). At short and intermediate term, multidisciplinary rehabilitation slightly improved pain compared with exercise (SOE: moderate). High-intensity multidisciplinary rehabilitation (≥20 hours/week or >80 hours total) was not clearly better than non–high-intensity programs. Chronic neck pain: At short and intermediate terms, acupuncture and Alexander Technique were associated with slightly improved function compared with usual care (both interventions), sham acupuncture, or sham laser (SOE: low), but no improvement in pain was seen at any time (SOE: llow). Short-term low-level laser therapy was associated with moderate improvement in function and pain (SOE: moderate). Combination exercise (any 3 of the following: muscle performance, mobility, muscle re-education, aerobic) demonstrated a slight improvement in pain and function short and long term (SOE: low). Osteoarthritis: For knee osteoarthritis, exercise and ultrasound demonstrated small short-term improvements in function compared with usual care, an attention control, or sham procedure (SOE: moderate for exercise, low for ultrasound), which persisted into the intermediate term only for exercise (SOE: low). Exercise was also associated with moderate improvement in pain (SOE: low). Long term, the small improvement in function seen with exercise persisted, but there was no clear effect on pain (SOE: low). Evidence was sparse on interventions for hip and hand osteoarthritis . Exercise for hip osteoarthritis was associated with slightly greater function and pain improvement than usual care short term (SOE: low). The effect on function was sustained intermediate term (SOE: low). Fibromyalgia: In the short term, acupuncture (SOE: moderate), CBT, tai chi, qigong, and exercise (SOE: low) were associated with slight improvements in function compared with an attention control, sham, no treatment, or usual care. Exercise (SOE: moderate) and CBT improved pain slightly, and tai chi and qigong (SOE: low) improved pain moderately in the short term. At intermediate term for exercise (SOE: moderate), acupuncture, and CBT (SOE: low), slight functional improvements persisted; they were also seen for myofascial release massage and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (SOE: low); pain was improved slightly with multidisciplinary rehabilitation in the intermediate term (SOE: low). In the long term, small improvements in function continued for multidisciplinary rehabilitation but not for exercise or massage (SOE: low for all); massage (SOE: low) improved long-term pain slightly, but no clear impact on pain for exercise (SOE: moderate) or multidisciplinary rehabilitation (SOE: low) was seen. Short-term CBT was associated with a slight improvement in function but not pain compared with pregabalin. Chronic tension headache: Evidence was sparse and the majority of trials were of poor quality. Spinal manipulation slightly improved function and moderately improved pain short term versus usual care, and laser acupuncture was associated with slight pain improvement short term compared with sham (SOE: low). There was no evidence suggesting increased risk for serious treatment-related harms for any of the interventions, although data on harms were limited.
CONCLUSIONS: Exercise, multidisciplinary rehabilitation, acupuncture, CBT, and mind-body practices were most consistently associated with durable slight to moderate improvements in function and pain for specific chronic pain conditions. Our findings provided some support for clinical strategies that focused on use of nonpharmacological therapies for specific chronic pain conditions. Additional comparative research on sustainability of effects beyond the immediate post-treatment period is needed, particularly for conditions other than low back pain.
La carga de dolor incapacitante y lesiones músculo-esquelético (trastornos musculoesqueléticos, MSD) se derivan de causas relacionadas con el trabajo en muchos lugares de trabajo sigue siendo considerable. Hay poco consenso sobre las intervenciones más apropiadas para los TME. Nuestro objetivo fue actualizar una revisión sistemática de las intervenciones basadas en el lugar de trabajo para la prevención y gestión de las extremidades superiores MSD (UEMSD). Seguimos un proceso de revisión sistemática desarrollada por el Instituto para el Trabajo y la Salud y una síntesis de las mejores pruebas adaptadas. 6 bases de datos electrónicas Se realizaron búsquedas (enero de 2008 hasta abril de 2013 inclusive) obteniéndose 9909 referencias no duplicados. 26 estudios de alta calidad y mediana calidad pertinentes a nuestra pregunta de investigación se combinaron con 35 a partir de la revisión original para sintetizar la evidencia en 30 categorías diferentes de intervención. Hubo una fuerte evidencia de una categoría de la intervención, el entrenamiento de resistencia, lo que lleva a la recomendación: La implementación de un programa de ejercicios de entrenamiento de resistencia basada en el lugar de trabajo puede ayudar a prevenir y controlar los síntomas y UEMSD. La síntesis también reveló pruebas moderadas para los programas de estiramiento, el uso del ratón y el antebrazo retroalimentación apoya en la prevención de UEMSD o síntomas. También hubo pruebas moderadas de ningún beneficio para la biorretroalimentación EMG, la formación en gestión estrés en el trabajo, y el ajuste de la estación de trabajo de oficina para UEMSD y los síntomas. Se proponen los mensajes tanto para éstas y otras categorías de intervención.
El trastorno de las extremidades superiores relacionados con el trabajo (WRULD), las lesiones por esfuerzo repetitivo (RSI), el síndrome de sobreuso ocupacional (OOS) y las quejas relacionadas con el trabajo del brazo, el cuello o el hombro (CANS) son los términos paraguas utilizados con más frecuencia para los trastornos que desarrollarse como resultado de movimientos repetitivos, posturas forzadas y el impacto de las fuerzas externas, tales como los relacionados con las herramientas que vibran operativo. LATAS relacionados con el trabajo, que es el término que utilizamos en esta revisión, dificulta gravemente la población activa.
OBJETIVOS: Evaluar los efectos de las intervenciones conservadoras para las quejas relacionadas con el trabajo del brazo, el cuello o el hombro (CANS) en adultos sobre el dolor, la función y los resultados relacionados con el trabajo.
Métodos de búsqueda: Se realizaron búsquedas en el Registro Cochrane Central de Ensayos Controlados (The Cochrane Library, 31 de mayo de 2013), MEDLINE (1950 al 31 de mayo de 2013), EMBASE (1988 al 31 de mayo de 2013), CINAHL (1982 al 31 de mayo de 2013), AMED (1985 al 31 de mayo de 2013), PsycINFO (1806 hasta 31 de mayo 2013), la Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro, inicio el 31 de mayo de 2013) y la Evaluación de la Terapia Ocupacional sistemática de Evidence Database (OTseeker; creación el 31 de mayo de 2013). No se aplicó ninguna restricción de idioma.
Criterios de selección: Se incluyeron los ensayos controlados aleatorios (ECA) y ensayos controlados cuasialeatorios que evaluaron intervenciones conservadoras para las quejas relacionadas con el trabajo del brazo, el cuello o el hombro en adultos. Se excluyeron los ensayos realizados para probar inyecciones y cirugía. Se incluyeron los estudios que evaluaron los efectos sobre el dolor, el estado funcional o la capacidad de trabajo.
Recopilación y análisis de datos: Dos autores de la revisión seleccionaron de forma independiente los ensayos para la inclusión, extrajeron los datos y evaluaron el riesgo de sesgo de los estudios incluidos. Cuando los estudios fueron lo suficientemente similares, se realizó la combinación estadística de los resultados reportados.
Resultados principales: Se incluyeron 44 estudios (62 publicaciones) con 6580 participantes que evaluaron 25 intervenciones diferentes. Hemos clasificado estas intervenciones en función de sus mecanismos de trabajo en los ejercicios, la ergonomía, comportamiento y otras intervenciones.
En general, nos examináramos 35 estudios que tienen un alto riesgo de sesgo debido principalmente a un procedimiento de asignación al azar desconocida, la falta de un procedimiento de ocultamiento de la asignación, los participantes de ensayos no cegados o la falta de un análisis por intención de tratar.
Encontramos evidencia de muy baja calidad, lo que demuestra que los ejercicios no mejoraron el dolor en comparación con ningún tratamiento (cinco estudios, la diferencia de medias estandarizada (DME) -0,52; intervalo de confianza del 95% (IC) -1,08 a 0,03) o los controles de intervención de menor importancia ( tres estudios, DME -0,25, IC del 95%: -0,87 a 0,37) o cuando se proporciona como un tratamiento adicional (dos estudios, resultados inconsistentes) a corto plazo de seguimiento o al largo plazo de seguimiento. Los resultados fueron similares para la recuperación, la discapacidad y la licencia por enfermedad. Ejercicios específicos condujeron a un aumento del dolor en el corto plazo de seguimiento en comparación con ejercicios generales (cuatro estudios, DME 0,45, IC del 95%: 0,14 a 0,75)
Encontramos evidencia de muy baja calidad, lo que indica que las intervenciones ergonómicas no dieron lugar a una disminución del dolor en comparación con ninguna intervención a corto plazo de seguimiento (tres estudios, DME -0,07, IC del 95%: -0,36 a 0,22), pero disminuyó dolor en el largo plazo de seguimiento (cuatro estudios, DME -0,76, IC del 95%: -1,35 a -0,16). No hubo ningún efecto sobre la discapacidad, pero las bajas por enfermedad se redujo en dos estudios (riesgo relativo (RR) 0,48, IC del 95%: 0,32 a 0,76). Ninguna de las intervenciones ergonómicas era más beneficioso para las medidas de resultado en comparación con otro tratamiento o con ningún tratamiento o con placebo.
Las intervenciones conductuales tienen efectos inconsistentes sobre el dolor y la discapacidad, con algunos subgrupos que muestran beneficio y otros que no muestran una mejora significativa en comparación con ningún tratamiento, controles de intervención menores u otras intervenciones conductuales.
En los ocho estudios que evaluaron otras intervenciones, no hubo pruebas de un efecto beneficioso claro de ninguna de las intervenciones previstas.
Conclusiones de los revisores: Se ha encontrado evidencia de muy baja calidad, lo que indica que el dolor, la recuperación, la discapacidad y las bajas por enfermedad son similares después de ejercicios en comparación con ningún tratamiento, con controles de intervención con ejercicios leves o proporcionados como tratamiento adicional para las personas con quejas relacionadas con el trabajo de el brazo, el cuello o el hombro. Las pruebas de baja calidad también mostró que las intervenciones ergonómicas no disminuyó el dolor en un corto plazo de seguimiento, pero hizo disminuir el dolor a largo plazo de seguimiento. No hubo pruebas de un efecto sobre otros resultados. Para las intervenciones conductuales y de otro tipo, que no había evidencia de un efecto consistente sobre cualquiera de los resultados.
Se necesitan estudios que incluir a más participantes, que son claras sobre el diagnóstico de la relación con el trabajo y que los resultados del informe de acuerdo con las directrices actuales.
Many interventions are available to manage chronic pain; understanding the durability of treatment effects may assist with treatment selection. We sought to assess which noninvasive nonpharmacological treatments for selected chronic pain conditions are associated with persistent improvement in function and pain outcomes at least 1 month after the completion of treatment.
DATA SOURCES:
Electronic databases (Ovid MEDLINE®, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews) through November 2017, reference lists, and ClinicalTrials.gov.
REVIEW METHODS:
Using predefined criteria, we selected randomized controlled trials of noninvasive nonpharmacological treatments for five common chronic pain conditions (chronic low back pain; chronic neck pain; osteoarthritis of the knee, hip, or hand; fibromyalgia; and tension headache) that addressed efficacy or harms compared with usual care, no treatment, waitlist, placebo, or sham intervention; compared with pharmacological therapy; or compared with exercise. Study quality was assessed, data extracted, and results summarized for function and pain. Only trials reporting results for at least 1 month post-intervention were included. We focused on the persistence of effects at short term (1 to <6 months following treatment completion), intermediate term (≥6 to <12 months), and long term (≥12 months).
RESULTS:
Two hundred eighteen publications (202 trials) were included. Many included trials were small. Evidence on outcomes beyond 1 year after treatment completion was sparse. Most trials enrolled patients with moderate baseline pain intensity (e.g., >5 on a 0 to 10 point numeric rating scale) and duration of symptoms ranging from 3 months to >15 years. The most common comparison was against usual care. Chronic low back pain: At short term, massage, yoga, and psychological therapies (primarily CBT) (strength of evidence [SOE]: moderate) and exercise, acupuncture, spinal manipulation, and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (
SOE:
low) were associated with slight improvements in function compared with usual care or inactive controls. Except for spinal manipulation, these interventions also improved pain. Effects on intermediate-term function were sustained for yoga, spinal manipulation, multidisciplinary rehabilitation (
SOE:
low), and psychological therapies (
SOE:
moderate). Improvements in pain continued into intermediate term for exercise, massage, and yoga (moderate effect
low); spinal manipulation, psychological therapies, and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (small effects
, SOE:
moderate). For acupuncture, there was no difference in pain at intermediate term, but a slight improvement at long term (
SOE:
low). Psychological therapies were associated with slightly greater improvement than usual care or an attention control on both function and pain at short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term followup (
SOE:
moderate). At short and intermediate term, multidisciplinary rehabilitation slightly improved pain compared with exercise (
SOE:
moderate). High-intensity multidisciplinary rehabilitation (≥20 hours/week or >80 hours total) was not clearly better than non–high-intensity programs. Chronic neck pain: At short and intermediate terms, acupuncture and Alexander Technique were associated with slightly improved function compared with usual care (both interventions), sham acupuncture, or sham laser (
SOE:
low), but no improvement in pain was seen at any time (
SOE:
llow). Short-term low-level laser therapy was associated with moderate improvement in function and pain (
SOE:
moderate). Combination exercise (any 3 of the following: muscle performance, mobility, muscle re-education, aerobic) demonstrated a slight improvement in pain and function short and long term (
SOE:
low). Osteoarthritis: For knee osteoarthritis, exercise and ultrasound demonstrated small short-term improvements in function compared with usual care, an attention control, or sham procedure (
SOE:
moderate for exercise, low for ultrasound), which persisted into the intermediate term only for exercise (
SOE:
low). Exercise was also associated with moderate improvement in pain (
SOE:
low). Long term, the small improvement in function seen with exercise persisted, but there was no clear effect on pain (
SOE:
low). Evidence was sparse on interventions for hip and hand osteoarthritis . Exercise for hip osteoarthritis was associated with slightly greater function and pain improvement than usual care short term (
SOE:
low). The effect on function was sustained intermediate term (
SOE:
low). Fibromyalgia: In the short term, acupuncture (
SOE:
moderate), CBT, tai chi, qigong, and exercise (
SOE:
low) were associated with slight improvements in function compared with an attention control, sham, no treatment, or usual care. Exercise (
SOE:
moderate) and CBT improved pain slightly, and tai chi and qigong (
SOE:
low) improved pain moderately in the short term. At intermediate term for exercise (
SOE:
moderate), acupuncture, and CBT (
SOE:
low), slight functional improvements persisted; they were also seen for myofascial release massage and multidisciplinary rehabilitation (
SOE:
low); pain was improved slightly with multidisciplinary rehabilitation in the intermediate term (
SOE:
low). In the long term, small improvements in function continued for multidisciplinary rehabilitation but not for exercise or massage (
SOE:
low for all); massage (
SOE:
low) improved long-term pain slightly, but no clear impact on pain for exercise (
SOE:
moderate) or multidisciplinary rehabilitation (
SOE:
low) was seen. Short-term CBT was associated with a slight improvement in function but not pain compared with pregabalin. Chronic tension headache: Evidence was sparse and the majority of trials were of poor quality. Spinal manipulation slightly improved function and moderately improved pain short term versus usual care, and laser acupuncture was associated with slight pain improvement short term compared with sham (
SOE:
low). There was no evidence suggesting increased risk for serious treatment-related harms for any of the interventions, although data on harms were limited.
CONCLUSIONS:
Exercise, multidisciplinary rehabilitation, acupuncture, CBT, and mind-body practices were most consistently associated with durable slight to moderate improvements in function and pain for specific chronic pain conditions. Our findings provided some support for clinical strategies that focused on use of nonpharmacological therapies for specific chronic pain conditions. Additional comparative research on sustainability of effects beyond the immediate post-treatment period is needed, particularly for conditions other than low back pain.
