Dino Budrovac

This study aimed to assess the relative impact of the Osijek multidisciplinary biopsychosocial program for chronic low back pain (CLBP) compared with standard multimodal care with respect to pain intensity, disability, health-related quality of life, anxiety, depression, stress, and sleep quality using standardized self-assessment questionnaires and a smartwatch. A total of 128 patients treated at the Department of Pain Management, University Hospital Osijek, were randomly allocated to two groups. The multidisciplinary biopsychosocial group participated in a structured four-week program combining education, exercise, and individualized multidisciplinary care, while the multimodal group received conventional conservative treatment including pharmacotherapy and selected physical therapy modalities. The four-week intervention included standardized self-report questionnaires, a sociodemographic data form, and a Fitbit Charge 3 smartwatch for objective monitoring of sleep and physical activity. A significant reduction in pain intensity was observed across numerical scales and most questionnaire measures (Wilcoxon test, p < 0.01), except for the subscale assessing difficulties in performing daily activities due to sleep deprivation. Participants who underwent the multidisciplinary biopsychosocial treatment exhibited significant improvements (p < 0.03) in pain intensity, disability, health-related quality of life, stress, anxiety, and sleep quality compared with those receiving multimodal treatment. In both groups, a weak negative correlation was found between sleep quality and daily step count (Spearman’s rho = −0.234, p = 0.04). A multidisciplinary biopsychosocial program was associated with greater improvements in health-related quality of life, psychological well-being, and sleep quality in patients with chronic low back pain compared with a multimodal conservative approach. Increased daily physical activity was linked to improvements in anxiety and sleep. Although this study was designed as a randomized controlled trial, certain baseline differences between groups should be considered when interpreting the findings.

Background: Chronic pain is a serious health issue associated with significant functional and emotional impairment. Chronic pain acceptance, which can be described as engaging in valued activities despite ongoing pain, is associated with better psychological adjustment and quality of life. This study aimed to translate the Eight-Item Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ-8) into Croatian and investigate its reliability and validity. Methods: A total of 229 outpatients with chronic musculoskeletal pain completed the Croatian version of the CPAQ-8, as well as the SF-36 Health Status Questionnaire (SF-36), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PSC), and the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NRS). Results: The Croatian version of the CPAQ-8 demonstrated good internal consistency for the total score and its subscales, and the exploratory factor analysis revealed the original two-factor structure. Concurrent validity was supported through theoretically consistent correlations with psychological distress, quality of life, and pain-related constructs. Conclusion: The Croatian version of the CPAQ-8 is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing pain acceptance in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain and can be confidently used in both clinical practice and research settings.

Background: Low back pain has frequently been mentioned as the most common sort of chronic pain, and numerous studies have confirmed its influence on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Despite a great deal of research demonstrating the important part that psychological factors play in explaining HRQoL, a therapeutic setting that prioritizes the physical domain still predominates. For this reason, the aim of this study is to assess the relationship between age, pain intensity, pain catastrophizing, depression, anxiety, pain-related anxiety, chronic pain acceptance and the psychological and physical dimensions of HRQoL in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Methods: Data were collected from 201 patients with CLBP using sociodemographic data, the SF-36 Health Status Questionnaire (SF-36), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale Short Form 20 (PASS-20), the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ-8) and the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NRS). The linear regression model for the dependent variable of Physical Health (SF-36 PhyH) was statistically significant (F (7, 201) = 38.951, p < 0.05), explaining 57.6% of the variance regarding the Physical Health dimension of HRQL in patients with CLBP. Results: The linear regression model for the dependent variable of Psychological Health (SF-36 PsyH) was statistically significant (F (7, 200) = 39.049, p < 0.05), explaining 57.7% of the variance regarding the Psychological Health dimension of HRQL in patients with CLBP. Conclusions: The findings of this study confirm that age, pain intensity, depression, pain-related anxiety and chronic pain acceptance are significant predictors of the physical dimension of HRQoL, while pain intensity, anxiety and depression proved to be significant predictors of the psychological dimension of HRQoL in patients with CLBP.

Low back pain has frequently been mentioned as the most common sort of chronic pain and numerous studies have confirmed its influence on Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between age, pain intensity, pain catastrophizing, depression, anxiety, pain-related anxiety, chronic pain acceptance and psychological and physical dimensions of HRQoL in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Data were collected from 201 patients with CLBP using sociodemografic data, the SF-36 Health Status Questionnaire (SF-36), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Pain Anxiety Symptoms Scale Short Form 20 (PASS-20), the Pain Catastrophizing Scale (PCS), the Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ-8) and the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NRS). The linear regression model for dependent variable Physical Health (SF-36 PhyH) was statistically significant (F(7,201) = 38.951, p <0.05), explained 57.6% of variance regarding Physical Health dimension of HRQL in patients with CLBP. The linear regression model for dependent variable Phychological Health (SF-36 PsyH) was statistically significant (F(7,200) = 39.049, p <0.05), explained 57.7% of variance regarding Psychological Health dimension of HRQL in patients with CLBP. The findings of this study confirm that age, pain intensity, depression, pain-related anxiety, and chronic pain acceptance are significant predictors of the physical dimension of HRQoL, while pain intensity, anxiety, and depression proved to be significant predictors of the psychological dimension of HRQoL in patients with CLBP.