Autobiographical memory predicts postsurgical pain up to 12 months after major surgery

Waisman, Anna; Kleiman, Valery; Slepian, P. Maxwell; Clarke, Hance; Katz, Joel

doi:10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002645

Cited by 5 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“… 98 Participants were administered the AMT before and 1 month after surgery, when they were asked to describe specific memories in response to a series of positive and pain-related cue words that were verbally presented by the experimenter. 98 After controlling for known risk factors for chronic pain (preexisting pain, psychological distress, age, and sex), individuals who produced fewer context-specific pain-related memories before surgery, as well as those who had slower response times for pain memories, were at greater risk of developing chronic pain 1, 3, 6, and 12 months later. The authors proposed that the characteristic preoccupation with abstract lifetime themes and categories of events related to pain associated with OGM might perpetuate self-schemas that become intertwined with pain 114 and, in turn, initiate and/or maintain the pain itself.…”

Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, specificity training could also be used to improve memory for the CBT sessions themselves, in order to enhance therapy outcomes. 170 Finally, because adults who undergo surgery and develop pain may have a self-concept centered around these experiences, 98 , 114 psychotherapy interventions could also address the content of patients’ memories by reappraising maladaptive preoccupation, restructuring memories to be more positive or accurate, and setting goals for the future.…”

Section: Intervention Prospectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One prospective, longitudinal study found autobiographical memory specificity to protect against the development of chronic postsurgical pain in adults. 98 …”

Section: Summary and Highlightsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, given what is known about the role of autobiographical memory processes in shaping our self-representations and future goals, it is likely that these same processes play an important role in healing and recovery from chronic pain. 17 , 98 …”

Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study from our lab addressed these gaps by following a sample of 98 adults scheduled for major surgery over the span of a year. 98 Participants were administered the AMT before and 1 month after surgery, when they were asked to describe specific memories in response to a series of positive and pain-related cue words that were verbally presented by the experimenter. 98 After controlling for known risk factors for chronic pain (preexisting pain, psychological distress, age, and sex), individuals who produced fewer context-specific pain-related memories before surgery, as well as those who had slower response times for pain memories, were at greater risk of developing chronic pain 1, 3, 6, and 12 months later.…”

Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Painful reminders: Involvement of the autobiographical memory system in pediatric postsurgical pain and the transition to chronicity

Waisman

Pavlova

Noel

et al. 2022

Canadian Journal of Pain

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Memory biases for previous pain experiences are known to be strong predictors of postsurgical pain outcomes in children. Until recently, much research on the subject in youth has assessed the sensory and affective components of recall using single-item self-report pain ratings. However, a newly emerging focus in the field has been on the episodic specificity of autobiographical pain memories. Still in its infancy, cross-sectional work has identified the presence of various memory biases in adults living with chronic pain, one of which concerns the lack of spatiotemporal specificity. Moreover, a recent prospective longitudinal study found that adults scheduled for major surgery who produced fewer specific pain memories before surgery were at greater risk of developing chronic postsurgical pain up to 12 months later. The present review draws on this research to highlight the timely need for a similar line of investigation into autobiographical pain memories in pediatric surgical populations. We (1) provide an overview of the literature on children’s pain memories and underscore the need for further research pertaining to memory specificity and related neurobiological factors in chronic pain and an overview of the (2) important role of parent (and sibling) psychosocial characteristics in influencing children’s pain development, (3) cognitive mechanisms underlying overgeneral memory, and (4) interplay between memory and other psychological factors in its contributions to chronic pain and (5) conclude with a discussion of the implications this research has for novel interventions that target memory biases to attenuate, and possibly eliminate, the risk that acute pain after pediatric surgery becomes chronic.

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Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Intervention Prospectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One prospective, longitudinal study found autobiographical memory specificity to protect against the development of chronic postsurgical pain in adults. 98 …”

Section: Summary and Highlightsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Overgeneral Memory Biasmentioning

confidence: 99%

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