While mild knee pain usually heals within one to two weeks, severe knee pain can not only last longer, but can also cause mental health problems. A new study suggests that even less physical pain doesn’t mean mental health problems improve.
“We wondered whether, with improved physical function and reduced pain, patients would experience fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression,” said the study’s senior author, Abby Cheng, MD, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Unified payment interface. “The answer is that they mostly don’t.”
“What interests me is that when a patient’s physical health improves significantly, patients experience less anxiety, but in many of these cases, depression does not improve,” she said. “As doctors, what we really care about is how the patient feels. One patient might be happy because now he or she can walk a mile, which is great. But other patients who can walk a mile may not be happy because they don’t Another mile to go.” Running a marathon, it’s not good. It’s the patient’s perception of their own health that really matters, and when pain decreases and physical function improves, these don’t necessarily improve. “
The study was published in JAMA Network Open.
The researchers tracked data on more than 11,000 patients who came to the UW Orthopedic Clinic for seven years. Each patient is given a tablet at check-in and asked if their orthopedic problem is causing any harm to their life.
They were asked, “How much does the pain affect your ability to do housework?” and “To what extent does the pain make it difficult to fall asleep?” The questionnaire also included a question about each person’s mental health.
“Our goal is to treat a person, not just fix a hip or a knee, with physical issues related to mood and anxiety, even depression,” Cheng said. “Patients have so much going on, it’s hard to provide good care without looking at the bigger picture.”
Some previous studies have shown that treating musculoskeletal problems can improve patients’ mental health, but the latest study did not find the same.
“Six months after surgery, patients may have less anxiety, but five years later things may be very different,” she said. “These anxiety symptoms often recur, although the focus of anxiety may no longer be related to the patient’s hip or other orthopedic problems.”
Published by Medicaldaily.com