Browsing by Author "Kerns, Robert D."
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Item Analgesic prescribing trends in a national sample of older veterans with osteoarthritis: 2012-2017(Wolters Kluwer, 2019-06) Trentalange, Mark; Runels, Tessa; Bean, Andrew; Kerns, Robert D.; Bair, Matthew J.; Brody, Abraham A.; Brandt, Cynthia A.; Hwang, Ula; Medicine, School of MedicineFew investigations examine patterns of opioid and nonopioid analgesic prescribing and concurrent pain intensity ratings before and after institution of safer prescribing programs such as the October 2013 Veterans Health Administration system-wide Opioid Safety Initiative (OSI) implementation. We conducted a quasi-experimental pre–post observational study of all older U.S. veterans (≥50 years old) with osteoarthritis of the knee or hip. All associated outpatient analgesic prescriptions and outpatient pain intensity ratings from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2016, were analyzed with segmented regression of interrupted time series. Standardized monthly rates for each analgesic class (total, opioid, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, acetaminophen, and other study analgesics) were analyzed with segmented negative binomial regression models with overall slope, step, and slope change. Similarly, segmented linear regression was used to analyze pain intensity ratings and percentage of those reporting pain. All models were additionally adjusted for age, sex, and race. Before OSI implementation, total analgesic prescriptions showed a steady rise, abruptly decreasing to a flat trajectory after OSI implementation. This trend was primarily due to a decrease in opioid prescribing after OSI. Total prescribing after OSI implementation was partially compensated by continuing increased prescribing of other study analgesics as well as a significant rise in acetaminophen prescriptions (post-OSI). No changes in nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug prescribing were seen. A small rise in the percentage of those reporting pain but not mean pain intensity ratings continued over the study period with no changes associated with OSI. Changes in analgesic prescribing trends were not paralleled by changes in reported pain intensity for older veterans with osteoarthritis.Item Brief Educational Video plus Telecare to Enhance Recovery for Older Emergency Department Patients with Acute Musculoskeletal Pain: an update to the study protocol for a randomized controlled trial(Springer, 2022-05-12) Hurka-Richardson, Karen; Platts-Mills, Timothy F.; McLean, Samuel A.; Weinberger, Morris; Stearns, Sally C.; Bush, Montika; Quackenbush, Eugenia; Chari, Srihari; Aylward, Aileen; Kroenke, Kurt; Kerns, Robert D.; Weaver , Mark A.; Keefe, Francis J.; Berkoff, David; Meyer, Michelle L.; Medicine, School of MedicineBackground This update describes changes to the Brief Educational Tool to Enhance Recovery (BETTER) trial in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods/design The original protocol was published in Trials. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BETTER trial converted to remote recruitment in April 2020. All recruitment, consent, enrollment, and randomization now occur by phone within 24 h of the acute care visit. Other changes to the original protocol include an expansion of inclusion criteria and addition of new recruitment sites. To increase recruitment numbers, eligibility criteria were expanded to include individuals with chronic pain, non-daily opioid use within 2 weeks of enrollment, presenting musculoskeletal pain (MSP) symptoms for more than 1 week, hospitalization in past 30 days, and not the first time seeking medical treatment for presenting MSP pain. In addition, recruitment sites were expanded to other emergency departments and an orthopedic urgent care clinic. Conclusions Recruiting from an orthopedic urgent care clinic and transitioning to remote operations not only allowed for continued participant enrollment during the pandemic but also resulted in some favorable outcomes, including operational efficiencies, increased enrollment, and broader generalizability.Item Brief Educational Video plus Telecare to Enhance Recovery for Older Emergency Department Patients with Acute Musculoskeletal Pain: an update to the study protocol for a randomized controlled trial(Springer Nature, 2022-05-12) Hurka‑Richardson, Karen; Platts‑Mills, Timothy F.; McLean, Samuel A.; Weinberger, Morris; Stearns, Sally C.; Bush, Montika; Quackenbush, Eugenia; Chari, Srihari; Aylward, Aileen; Kroenke, Kurt; Kerns, Robert D.; Weaver, Mark A.; Keefe, Francis J.; Berkoff, David; Meyer, Michelle L.; Medicine, School of MedicineBackground: This update describes changes to the Brief Educational Tool to Enhance Recovery (BETTER) trial in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods/design: The original protocol was published in Trials. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BETTER trial converted to remote recruitment in April 2020. All recruitment, consent, enrollment, and randomization now occur by phone within 24 h of the acute care visit. Other changes to the original protocol include an expansion of inclusion criteria and addition of new recruitment sites. To increase recruitment numbers, eligibility criteria were expanded to include individuals with chronic pain, non-daily opioid use within 2 weeks of enrollment, presenting musculoskeletal pain (MSP) symptoms for more than 1 week, hospitalization in past 30 days, and not the first time seeking medical treatment for presenting MSP pain. In addition, recruitment sites were expanded to other emergency departments and an orthopedic urgent care clinic. Conclusions: Recruiting from an orthopedic urgent care clinic and transitioning to remote operations not only allowed for continued participant enrollment during the pandemic but also resulted in some favorable outcomes, including operational efficiencies, increased enrollment, and broader generalizability.Item Core Outcome Measures for Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Research: Recommendations from a Veterans Health Administration Work Group(Oxford, 2019-08) Kroenke, Kurt; Krebs, Erin E.; Turk, Dennis; Von Korff, Michael; Bair, Matthew J.; Allen, Kelli D.; Sandbrink, Friedhelm; Cheville, Andrea L.; DeBar, Lynn; Lorenz, Karl A.; Kerns, Robert D.; Medicine, School of MedicineObjective Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMSP) disorders are among the most prevalent and disabling conditions worldwide. It would be advantageous to have common outcome measures when comparing results across different CMSP research studies. Methods The Veterans Health Administration appointed a work group to recommend core outcome measures for assessing pain intensity and interference as well as important secondary domains in clinical research. The work group used three streams of data to inform their recommendations: 1) literature synthesis augmented by three recently completed trials; 2) review and comparison of measures recommended by other expert groups; 3) two Delphi surveys of work group members. Results The single-item numerical rating scale and seven-item Brief Pain Inventory interference scale emerged as the recommended measures for assessing pain intensity and interference, respectively. The secondary domains ranked most important included physical functioning and depression, followed by sleep, anxiety, and patient-reported global impression of change (PGIC). For these domains, the work group recommended the Patient-Reported Outcome Information System four-item physical function and sleep scales, the Patient Health Questionnaire two-item depression scale, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder two-item anxiety scale, and the single-item PGIC. Finally, a single-item National Health Interview Survey item was favored for defining chronic pain. Conclusions Two scales comprising eight items are recommended as core outcome measures for pain intensity and interference in all studies of chronic musculoskeletal pain, and brief scales comprising 13 additional items can be added when possible to assess important secondary domains.Item Cost-effectiveness of a chronic pain intervention for people living with HIV (PLWH)(Taylor & Francis, 2018) Merlin, Jessica S.; Westfall, Andrew O.; Johnson, Mallory O.; Kerns, Robert D.; Bair, Matthew J.; Kertesz, Stefan; Turan, Janet M.; Clay, Olivio J.; Starrels, Joanna L.; Kilgore, Meredith; Medicine, School of MedicineBackground: Chronic pain is a common, disabling, and costly comorbidity, particularly in people living with HIV (PLWH). This study developed and pilot tested a pain self-management intervention for chronic pain tailored to PLWH called Skills TO Manage Pain (STOMP). Objectives: Given the additional resources needed to deliver STOMP in HIV clinical settings, an important objective of the pilot study was to assess not only STOMP’s preliminary efficacy, but also its cost-effectiveness. Research design and subjects: The present study draws from a 44-participant, 2-arm randomized pilot trial of the STOMP intervention vs usual care among PLWH and at least moderate chronic pain (Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02824562). Cost-effectiveness is presented as the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Costs were considered from the clinic perspective over a 1-year time horizon using real costs from the pilot trial. It was conservatively assumed there would be no costs savings. The Standard Gamble (SG) method was used to directly measure utilities. Results: Thirty-six participants met inclusion criteria for the present analyses. Mean age was 52 years; 61% were female and 86% were black. The total cost of STOMP was $483.83 per person. Using the SG method, the change in QALYs was 0.15, corresponding to an ICER of $3,225. Conclusions: STOMP’s cost/QALY is substantially lower than the $50,000 to $100,000/QALY benchmark often used to indicate cost-effectiveness. Although based on a pilot trial and, therefore, preliminary, these findings are promising, and suggest the importance of cost analyses in future STOMP trials.Item Gender Differences in Demographic and Clinical Correlates among Veterans with Musculoskeletal Disorders(Elsevier, 2017-07) Higgins, Diana M.; Fenton, Brenda T.; Driscoll, Mary A.; Heapy, Alicia A.; Kerns, Robert D.; Bair, Matthew J.; Carroll, Constance; Brennan, Penny L.; Burgess, Diana J.; Piette, John D.; Haskell, Sally G.; Brandt, Cynthia A.; Goulet, Joseph L.; Medicine, School of MedicineBackground Studies suggest that women may be at greater risk for developing chronic pain and pain-related disability. Methods Because musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are the most frequently endorsed painful conditions among veterans, we sought to characterize gender differences in sociodemographic and clinical correlates among veterans upon entry into Veterans Health Administration's Musculoskeletal Disorders Cohort (n = 4,128,008). Results Women were more likely to be younger, Black, unmarried, and veterans of recent conflicts. In analyses adjusted for gender differences in sociodemographics, women were more likely to have diagnoses of fibromyalgia, temporomandibular disorders, and neck pain. Almost one in five women (19.4%) had more than one MSD diagnosis, compared with 15.7% of men; this higher risk of MSD multimorbidity remained in adjusted analyses. Adjusting for sociodemographics, women with MSD were more likely to have migraine headache and depressive, anxiety, and bipolar disorders. Women had lower odds of cardiovascular diseases, substance use disorders, and several MSDs, including back pain conditions. Men were more likely to report “no pain” on the pain intensity Numeric Rating Scale, whereas more women (41%) than men (34%) reported moderate to severe pain (Numeric Rating Scale 4+). Conclusions Because women veterans are more likely to have conditions such as fibromyalgia and mental health conditions, along with greater pain intensity in the setting of MSD, women-specific pain services may be needed.Item If you personalize it, will they use it?: Self-reported and observed use of a tailored, internet-based pain self-management program(Oxford University Press, 2022) Reuman, Lillian; Solar, Chelsey; MacLean, R. Ross; Halat, Allison M.; Rajeevan, Haseena; Williams, David A.; Heapy, Alicia A.; Bair, Matthew J.; Krein, Sarah L.; Kerns, Robert D.; Higgins, Diana M.; Medicine, School of MedicineLittle is known about how individuals with chronic pain use tailored internet-based interventions. This study is the first to compare self-reported skill module use to observed module access and to examine each of these in relationship to tailored recommendations to access specific content. Participants (N = 58) enrolled in a 10-week trial of the Pain EASE program, a tailored internet-based intervention that includes 10 pain self-management skill modules. Participants completed a “Self-Assessment,” which was used to provide a “Personalized Plan” that encouraged accessing specific modules. Participants self-reported module use during weekly data collection telephone calls. Program log data were extracted to capture “observed” module use during the trial period. Findings indicated significantly greater self-reported use of the Pain EASE modules compared to observed access with log data. Further, log data revealed that participants accessed less than half of the modules recommended to them via tailoring.Item Methods for pragmatic randomized clinical trials of pain therapies: IMMPACT statement(Wolters Kluwer, 2024) Hohenschurz-Schmidt, David; Cherkin, Dan; Rice, Andrew S. C.; Dworkin, Robert H.; Turk, Dennis C.; McDermott, Michael P.; Bair, Matthew J.; DeBar, Lynn L.; Edwards, Robert R.; Evans, Scott R.; Farrar, John T.; Kerns, Robert D.; Rowbotham, Michael C.; Wasan, Ajay D.; Cowan, Penney; Ferguson, McKenzie; Freeman, Roy; Gewandter, Jennifer S.; Gilron, Ian; Grol-Prokopczyk, Hanna; Iyengar, Smriti; Kamp, Cornelia; Karp, Barbara I.; Kleykamp, Bethea A.; Loeser, John D.; Mackey, Sean; Malamut, Richard; McNicol, Ewan; Patel, Kushang V.; Schmader, Kenneth; Simon, Lee; Steiner, Deborah J.; Veasley, Christin; Vollert, Jan; Medicine, School of MedicinePragmatic, randomized, controlled trials hold the potential to directly inform clinical decision making and health policy regarding the treatment of people experiencing pain. Pragmatic trials are designed to replicate or are embedded within routine clinical care and are increasingly valued to bridge the gap between trial research and clinical practice, especially in multidimensional conditions, such as pain and in nonpharmacological intervention research. To maximize the potential of pragmatic trials in pain research, the careful consideration of each methodological decision is required. Trials aligned with routine practice pose several challenges, such as determining and enrolling appropriate study participants, deciding on the appropriate level of flexibility in treatment delivery, integrating information on concomitant treatments and adherence, and choosing comparator conditions and outcome measures. Ensuring data quality in real-world clinical settings is another challenging goal. Furthermore, current trials in the field would benefit from analysis methods that allow for a differentiated understanding of effects across patient subgroups and improved reporting of methods and context, which is required to assess the generalizability of findings. At the same time, a range of novel methodological approaches provide opportunities for enhanced efficiency and relevance of pragmatic trials to stakeholders and clinical decision making. In this study, best-practice considerations for these and other concerns in pragmatic trials of pain treatments are offered and a number of promising solutions discussed. The basis of these recommendations was an Initiative on Methods, Measurement, and Pain Assessment in Clinical Trials (IMMPACT) meeting organized by the Analgesic, Anesthetic, and Addiction Clinical Trial Translations, Innovations, Opportunities, and Networks.Item Mixed methods formative evaluation of a collaborative care program to decrease risky opioid prescribing and increase non-pharmacologic approaches to pain management(Elsevier, 2018) Becker, William C.; Mattocks, Kristin M.; Frank, Joseph W.; Bair, Matthew J.; Jankowski, Rebecca L.; Kerns, Robert D.; Painter, Jacob T.; Fenton, Brenda T.; Midboe, Amanda M.; Martino, Steve; Medicine, School of MedicineIntroduction Opioid prescribing and subsequent rates of serious harms have dramatically increased in the past two decades, yet there are still significant barriers to reduction of risky opioid regimens. This formative evaluation utilized a mixed-methods approach to identify barriers and factors that may facilitate the successful implementation of Primary Care-Integrated Pain Support (PIPS), a clinical program designed to support the reduction of risky opioid regimens while increasing the uptake of non-pharmacologic treatment modalities. Methods Eighteen Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees across three sites completed a survey consisting of the Organizational Readiness for Implementing Change (ORIC) scale; a subset of these individuals (n = 9) then completed a semi-structured qualitative phone interview regarding implementing PIPS within the VA. ORIC results were analyzed using descriptive statistics while interview transcripts were coded and sorted according to qualitative themes. Results Quantitative analysis based on ORIC indicated high levels of organizational readiness to implement PIPS. Interview analysis revealed several salient themes: system-level barriers such as tension among various pain management providers; patient-level barriers such as perception of support and tension between patient and provider; and facilitating factors of PIPS, such as the importance of the clinical pharmacist role. Conclusions While organizational readiness for implementing PIPS appears high, modifications to our implementation facilitation strategy (e.g., establishing clinical pharmacists as champions; marketing PIPS to leadership as a way to improve VA opioid safety metrics) may improve capacity of the sites to implement PIPS successfully.Item Predictors of engagement in an internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy program for veterans with chronic low back pain(Oxford University Press, 2021) Solar, Chelsey; Halat, Allison M.; MacLean, R. Ross; Rajeevan, Haseena; Williams, David A.; Krein, Sarah L.; Heapy, Alicia A.; Bair, Matthew J.; Kerns, Robert D.; Higgins, Diana M.; Medicine, School of MedicineInternet-based interventions for chronic pain have demonstrated efficacy and may address access barriers to care. Participant characteristics have been shown to affect engagement with these programs; however, limited information is available about the relationship between participant characteristics and engagement with internet-based programs for self-management of chronic pain. The current study examined relationships between demographic and clinical characteristics and engagement with the Pain EASE program, a self-directed, internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy intervention for veterans with chronic low back pain (cLBP). Veterans with cLBP were enrolled in a 10 week trial of the Pain EASE program. Engagement measures included the number of logins, access to coping skill modules, and completed study staff-initiated weekly check-in calls. Regression analyses were conducted to identify significant predictors of engagement from hypothesized predictors (e.g., race/ethnicity, age, depressive symptom severity, and pain interference). Participants (N = 58) were 93% male, 60.3% identified as White, and had a mean age of 54.5 years. Participants logged into the program a median of 3.5 times, accessed a median of 2 skill modules, and attended a median of 6 check-in calls. Quantile regression revealed that, at the 50th percentile, non-White-identified participants accessed fewer modules than White-identified participants (p = .019). Increased age was associated with increased module use (p = .001). No clinical characteristics were significantly associated with engagement measures. White-identified race/ethnicity and increased age were associated with greater engagement with the Pain EASE program. Results highlight the importance of defining and increasing engagement in internet-delivered pain care.