Chronic Pain Following Thoracic Surgery

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Pain that persists after the healing of a surgical wound has previously been described as an important, but often unrecognized clinical problem. Persistent postsurgical (chronic postoperative pain) is the consequence of either ongoing inflammation or more common neuropathic pain as a result of surgical damage to peripheral nerves. Previous studies have shown that chronic pain is a frequent and serious complication following thoracic surgery. However, the prevalence of chronic pain following both thoracoscopy and anterior thoracotomy in patients with pulmonary malignancies is poorly characterized and the impact of this pain on patients' lives remains unclear. Thus, this study aims to investigate the prevalence of chronic pain following thoracoscopy or anterior thoracotomy, and the severity and impact of persistent post-surgical pain on daily life. This study is working with several hypotheses: 1.) persistent postsurgical pain following lung cancer surgery is predominantly of neuropathic nature and the presence of neuropathic symptoms increases the severity of postsurgical pain and reduces the patient's quality of life, 2.) the prevalence of chronic pain is reduced over time, and 3.) less invasive thoracic surgical interventions reduces the risk of the development of chronic pain.

Official Title
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Study of Persistent Postsurgical Pain Following Thoracic Surgery in Patients With Pulmonary Malignancies

Conditions
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Pain, Postoperative

Intervention / Treatment
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* Procedure: Thoracic surgery


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Patients who previously underwent thoracic surgery with lung resection from January 2000 to december 2009 Exclusion Criteria: Death
Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Thoracic surgical patients<br>Patients with pulmonary malignancies | Procedure: Thoracic surgery<br>* Thoracoscopy or anterior thoracotomy<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Presence of persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Location of persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Duration of postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Course of persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Severity of postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Characteristics of persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Symptoms associated with persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Treatment of and effect of treatment on persistent postsurgical pain |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 
| Effect of postsurgical pain on activity, mood, walking ability, work, interpersonal relations, sleep and quality of life |  | Within 10 years after thoracic surgery | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Thoracotomy, Thoracic Surgery, Thoracic Surgical Procedures, Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted, Lung Neoplasms, Thoracic Nerves