CMT Pain Science & Patient Education Flashcards

Hyperalgesia differs from allodynia in that hyperalgesia involves:

Answer: An exaggerated pain response to a stimulus that is normally mildly painful

Hyperalgesia is an increased pain response to a stimulus that would normally cause mild pain, whereas allodynia is pain from a non-painful stimulus.

When educating a patient with chronic low back pain, a CMT should emphasize that:

Answer: Movement is generally safe and pain does not always mean harm (hurt ≠ harm)

A core PNE message is 'hurt does not equal harm' — movement is generally safe for chronic pain and avoidance perpetuates disability.

Endogenous pain inhibition (descending modulation) is primarily mediated by which neurotransmitters?

Answer: Serotonin, norepinephrine, and endogenous opioids

Descending pain inhibitory pathways use serotonin, norepinephrine, and endogenous opioids (enkephalins, endorphins) to modulate spinal nociception.

Which psychological factor is most strongly associated with poor chronic pain outcomes in research?

Answer: Pain catastrophizing — rumination, magnification, and helplessness about pain

Pain catastrophizing (ruminating on pain, magnifying its threat, feeling helpless) is consistently the strongest psychological predictor of poor pain outcomes.

The Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK) measures:

Answer: Fear of movement and re-injury in musculoskeletal pain patients

The TSK is a validated 17-item questionnaire measuring fear of movement and re-injury (kinesiophobia) in musculoskeletal pain populations.

A CMT identifies yellow flags in a patient history to recognize:

Answer: Psychosocial risk factors for chronicity and disability

Yellow flags are psychosocial factors (beliefs, behaviors, emotions, social context) that increase the risk of developing chronic pain and disability.