Evaluation of The Pain in COVID-19 Patients with Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study

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YAMAN F., ÖZDEMİR M. F., AKDENİZ LEBLEBİCİER M., ÖZLÜ A., GÖKPINAR H. H.

ANNALS OF CLINICAL AND ANALYTICAL MEDICINE, 2022 (Peer-Reviewed Journal)

Abstract

Abstract Aim: There is no study that have assessed face-to-face using the multidimensional pain scale in COVID-19 patients with musculoskeletal pain. This study aimed to reveal the pain region, character and severity in COVID-19 patients with musculoskeletal pain. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in 214 patients who had a positive result of the polymerase chain reaction test within the last five days and at least one musculoskeletal pain symptom, such as fatigue, myalgia, and arthralgia/polyarthralgia. The cases were divided into groups as clinically severe and non-severe. Evaluations were made on the first day of admission. Myalgia symptoms were classified as diffuse and local. The McGill Pain Questionnaire was used for pain regions and caharacters while the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was for pain intensity. Results: The frequency of involvement was myalgia (96.3%), fatigue (77.6%) and polyarthralgia (62.6%), respectively. The diffuse myalgia was (53.3%) in all patients. The mean myalgia VAS score in the non-severe group was 5.88±1.83 and 6.25±1.24 in the severe group (p=0.192). The most common pain areas were the back, feet, and knees respectively, and throbbing (40.7%), aching (30.8%), and pricking (26.1%) were the most common characteristics. The suffocating character of the pain was significantly higher in the severe group (p<0.05). Discussion: Defining disease-specific pain regions, character and severity in COVID-19 patients with musculoskeletal pain is important in managing possible chronic pain. Keywords COVID-19, Myalgia, Arthralgia, Neuropathic pain, Pain severity