Psychological factors are more strongly associated with pain than radiographic severity in non-invasively treated first carpometacarpal osteoarthritis

Abstract

Our results show that psychological factors are more strongly related to pain levels prior to non-invasive treatment in patients with osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint than patient characteristics and X-ray scores, which implies the important role of these factors in the reporting of symptoms. More research is needed to determine whether psychological factors will also affect treatment outcomes for patients treated non-invasively for osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONPain is the most important complaint for patients with osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint.Psychological factors are strongly associated with pain levels prior to treatment.Pain catastrophizing behavior appears to be a promising target for complementary treatment in patients with osteoarthritis of the first carpometacarpal joint.