Association between widespread pain and associated symptoms in patients with cirrhosis

Abstract

Background: Chronic pain is common in cirrhosis; however, the mechanistic classifications are not well characterized. Nociplastic pain, for instance, is associated with comorbid nonpain symptoms and responds to different treatments than nociceptive pain.

Methods: We conducted a survey study in February 2022 of adult patients with cirrhosis at the University of Michigan (N = 238) to evaluate pain widespreadedness, associated nociplastic symptoms, and pain intensity.

Findings: Pain and pain widespreadedness were associated with mood and cognitive disturbance, fatigue, sleep difficulty, and physical and social functioning. Patient-reported Outcomes, such as body maps, can be useful to phenotype patients for pain mechanisms.