Classification and Treatment of Chronic Neck Pain: A Longitudinal Cohort Study

Background and Objectives: Neck pain exerts a steep personal and socioeconomic toll, ranking as the fourth leading cause of disability. The principal determinant in treatment decisions is whether pain is neuropathic or nonneuropathic, as this affects treatment at all levels. Yet, no study has sought to classify neck pain in this manner.

Methods: One hundred participants referred to an urban, academic military treatment facility with a primary diagnosis of neck pain were enrolled and followed up for 6 months. Pain was classified as neuropathic, possible neuropathic, or nonneuropathic using painDETECT and as neuropathic, mixed, or nociceptive by s-LANSS (self-completed Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptoms and Signs pain scale) and physician designation. Based on previous studies, the intermediate possible neuropathic pain category was considered to be a mixed condition. The final classification was based on a metric combining all 3 systems, slightly weighted toward physician's judgment, which is considered the reference standard.

Results: Fifty percent of participants were classified as having possible neuropathic pain, 43% as having nonneuropathic pain, and 7% with primarily neuropathic pain. Concordance was high between the various classification schemes, ranging from a low of 62% between painDETECT and physician designation for possible neuropathic pain, to 83% concordance between s-LANSS and the 2 other systems for neuropathic pain. Individuals with neuropathic pain reported higher levels of baseline disability, were more likely to have a coexisting psychiatric illness, and underwent surgery more frequently than other pain categories, but were also more likely to report greater reductions in disability after 6 months.

Conclusions: Although pure neuropathic pain comprised a small percentage of our cohort, 50% of our population consisted of mixed pain conditions containing a possible neuropathic component. There was significant overlap between the various classification schemes.