Evaluation of Pressure Pain Threshold as a Measure of Perceived Stress and High Job Strain

TY - JOUR

T1 - Evaluation of Pressure Pain Threshold as a Measure of Perceived Stress and High Job Strain

AU - Hven, Lisbeth

AU - Frost, Poul

AU - Bonde, Jens Peter Ellekilde

PY - 2017/1

Y1 - 2017/1

N2 - OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether pressure pain threshold (PPT), determined by pressure algometry, can be used as an objective measure of perceived stress and job strain.METHODS: We used cross-sectional base line data collected during 1994 to 1995 within the Project on Research and Intervention in Monotonous work (PRIM), which included 3123 employees from a variety of Danish companies. Questionnaire data included 18 items on stress symptoms, 23 items from the Karasek scale on job strain, and information on discomfort in specified anatomical regions was also collected. Clinical examinations included pressure pain algometry measurements of PPT on the trapezius and supraspinatus muscles and the tibia. Associations of stress symptoms and job strain with PPT of each site was analyzed for men and women separately with adjustment for age body mass index, and discomfort in the anatomical region closest to the point of pressure algometry using multivariable linear regression.RESULTS: We found significant inverse associations between perceived stress and PPT in both genders in models adjusting for age and body mass index: the higher level of perceived stress, the lower the threshold. For job strain, associations were weaker and only present in men. In men all associations were attenuated when adjusting for reported discomfort in regions close to the site of pressure algometry. The distributions of PPT among stressed and non-stressed persons were strongly overlapping.CONCLUSIONS: Despite significant associations between perceived stress and PPT, the discriminative capability of PPT to distinguish individuals with and without stress is low. PPT measured by pressure algometry seems not applicable as a diagnostic tool of a state of mental stress.

AB - OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether pressure pain threshold (PPT), determined by pressure algometry, can be used as an objective measure of perceived stress and job strain.METHODS: We used cross-sectional base line data collected during 1994 to 1995 within the Project on Research and Intervention in Monotonous work (PRIM), which included 3123 employees from a variety of Danish companies. Questionnaire data included 18 items on stress symptoms, 23 items from the Karasek scale on job strain, and information on discomfort in specified anatomical regions was also collected. Clinical examinations included pressure pain algometry measurements of PPT on the trapezius and supraspinatus muscles and the tibia. Associations of stress symptoms and job strain with PPT of each site was analyzed for men and women separately with adjustment for age body mass index, and discomfort in the anatomical region closest to the point of pressure algometry using multivariable linear regression.RESULTS: We found significant inverse associations between perceived stress and PPT in both genders in models adjusting for age and body mass index: the higher level of perceived stress, the lower the threshold. For job strain, associations were weaker and only present in men. In men all associations were attenuated when adjusting for reported discomfort in regions close to the site of pressure algometry. The distributions of PPT among stressed and non-stressed persons were strongly overlapping.CONCLUSIONS: Despite significant associations between perceived stress and PPT, the discriminative capability of PPT to distinguish individuals with and without stress is low. PPT measured by pressure algometry seems not applicable as a diagnostic tool of a state of mental stress.

KW - Adult

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Male

KW - Muscles/physiopathology

KW - Pain Threshold/psychology

KW - Pressure

KW - Self Report

KW - Stress, Psychological/physiopathology

KW - Tibia/physiopathology

KW - Work/psychology

U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0167257

DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0167257

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 28052089

SN - 1932-6203

VL - 12

JO - PLoS Computational Biology

JF - PLoS Computational Biology

IS - 1

M1 - e0167257

ER -