article information

International Journal of Cancer Management: Vol.5, issue 2; e80804
published online: June 30, 2012
article type: Research Article
received: November 18, 2011
accepted: January 15, 2012

Sensitivity to Pain in Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL)

authors:

avatar Manijeh Firoozi 1 , * , avatar Reza Rostami 2

Assistance Professor of Health Psychology, Dept. of Psychology, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran
Dept. of Psychology, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran

how to cite: Firoozi M, Rostami R. Sensitivity to Pain in Children With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Int J Cancer Manag. 2012;5(2):e80804. 

Abstract

Background: There are many physiological and psychological factors, which affect sensitivity to pain in children afflicted with ALL. The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the relation between salivary cortisol and sensitivity to pain, and also study the role of age and gender.
Methods: Seventy eight children (33 girls and 45 boys, aged 3 to 12 years) with ALL participated in this study. Morning salivary cortisol was measured and Behavior Scales of Sensitivity to Pain for Children (BSSPC) and Pre-Linguistic Behavioral Pain Reactivity Scale (PL-BPRS) were applied.
Results: The results showed a high significant correlation between cortisol levels and pain sensitivity. Cortisol suppression was observed in some participants. The roles of gender and age in relation between cortisol levels and sensitivity to pain were assessed by using moderated regression. Gender and age moderated the relation between sensitivity to pain and cortisol level.
Conclusion: Conditional fear can explain for high sensitivity to pain amongst the participants; chemotherapy drugs might play a role in cortisol suppression and parenthood style perhaps determines sex difference in reaction to pain.

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