Effective Treatment of Chronic Pain and Insomnia

Written by National Institutes of Health

An NIH panel finds that behavioral therapy and relaxation techniques are effective for treatment of chronic pain, but questionable for treatment of insomnia.

Integration of Behavioral and Relaxation Approaches Into the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Insomnia

National Institutes of Health Technology Assessment Conference Statement October 16-18, 1995

NIH Consensus statements and State-of-the-Science statements (formerly known as technology assessment statements) are prepared by a nonadvocate, non-Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) panels, based on (1) presentations by investigators working in areas relevant to the consensus questions during a 2-day public session; (2) questions and statements from conference attendees during open discussion periods that are part of the public session; and (3) closed deliberations by the panel during the remainder of the second day and morning of the third. This statement is an independent report of the panel and is not a policy statement of the NIH or the Federal Government.

The statement reflects the panel's assessment of medical knowledge available at the time the statement was written. Thus, it provides a "snapshot in time" of the state of knowledge on the conference topic. When reading the statement, keep in mind that new knowledge is inevitably accumulating through medical research.

This statement is published as: Integration of Behavioral and Relaxation Approaches into the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Insomnia. NIH Technol Assess Statement 1995 Oct 16-18:1-34

For making bibliographic reference to technology assessment conference statement no. 17 in electronic form displayed here, it is recommended that the following format be used: Integration of Behavioral and Relaxation Approaches into the Treatment of Chronic Pain and Insomnia. NIH Technol Statement Online 1995 Oct 16-18 [cited year month day], 1-34.

Abstract

Objective. To provide physicians with a responsible assessment of the integration of behavioral and relaxation approaches into the treatment of chronic pain and insomnia.

Participants. A non-Federal, nonadvocate, 12-member panel representing the fields of family medicine, social medicine, psychiatry, psychology, public health, nursing, and epidemiology. In addition, 23 experts in behavioral medicine, pain medicine, sleep medicine, psychiatry, nursing, psychology, neurology, and behavioral and neurosciences presented data to the panel and a conference audience of 528.

Evidence. The literature was searched through Medline and an extensive bibliography of references was provided to the panel and the conference audience. Experts prepared abstracts with relevant citations from the literature. Scientific evidence was given precedence over clinical anecdotal experience.

Assessment Process. The panel, answering predefined questions, developed their conclusions based on the scientific evidence presented in open forum and the scientific literature. The panel composed a draft statement that was read in its entirety and circulated to the experts and the audience for comment. Thereafter, the panel resolved conflicting recommendations and released a revised statement at the end of the conference. The panel finalized the revisions within a few weeks after the conference.

Conclusions. A number of well-defined behavioral and relaxation interventions now exist and are effective in the treatment of chronic pain and insomnia. The panel found strong evidence for the use of relaxation techniques in reducing chronic pain in a variety of medical conditions as well as strong evidence for the use of hypnosis in alleviating pain associated with cancer. The evidence was moderate for the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral techniques and biofeedback in relieving chronic pain. Regarding insomnia, behavioral techniques, particularly relaxation and biofeedback, produce improvements in some aspects of sleep, but it is questionable whether the magnitude of the improvement in sleep onset and total sleep time is clinically significant.