University of Kentucky
Chronic orofacial pain conditions (COFP) are associated with substantial physical and psychological burden and are best treated with multidisciplinary approaches combining psychological interventions and comprehensive orofacial pain care. Yet, important barriers prevent access to psychological interventions for COFP (e.g., lack of providers, financial resources). This study will assess the feasibility and acceptability of adapting a single two-hour telehealth-delivered group course, Empowered Relief (ER), which was created for heterogenous chronic pain condition, into a multidisciplinary COFP clinic. ER addresses many existing barriers to assessing psychological interventions for COFP as it is deliverable via telehealth, in a group format, within a single session. This study hypothesizes that ER will demonstrate adequate feasibility and acceptability among patients with COFP. Participants will be recruited over a 6-month period from patients evaluated for an initial appointment at the University of Kentucky Orofacial Pain Clinic (UKOPC). A randomized waitlist control design will be used to inform a future efficacy trial. Specifically, new patients seeking an initial appointment at the UKOPC will be introduced to the study, and if they consent, they will be randomly assigned to participate in the next available ER course (i.e., immediate group) or the ER course offered the subsequent month (i.e., waitlist control group). All participants will provide feasibility and acceptability data after receiving the intervention. Those assigned to immediate group will provide biopsychosocial functioning and outcome data at one, two, and four weeks following the pain course. Those assigned to the immediate control group will provide data one, two, and four weeks before the intervention for a comparison group. Data from this study will inform design decisions for a future efficacy trial.
Chronic orofacial pain (COFP) is comprised of various disorders in the temporomandibular region causing pain that lasts more than three months and are associated with substantial physical and psychological burden. These disorders often co-occur with other conditions such as headache, general chronic pain, and psychiatric disorders. The etiology of COFP is complex, with environmental, psychosocial, emotional, and genetic factors contributing to the development, chronicity, and maintenance of these disorders. Regardless of etiology, COFPs are impactful, commonly resulting in interference with da…
Inclusion Criteria: * Must be in the state of Kentucky * Must be 18 years or older * Ability to read, write, and speak English * Experienced pain longer than 3 months * Treatment-seeking patient at University of Kentucky Orofacial Pain Clinic * Must have the appropriate technology to access telehealth (e.g., laptop, stable connection) Exclusion Criteria: * Suicidal ideation with intent in the last two weeks * Homicidal ideation with intent in the last 2 weeks * Mania symptoms in the past 6 months * Hypomania symptoms in the past 6 months * Psychosis symptoms in the past 6 months
Empowered Relief (ER) is a single-session, 2-hour pain management course designed with the purpose of assisting individuals with chronic pain to gain skills for self-pain management. ER is taught through a PowerPoint presentation which includes pain education, self-regulatory skills (i.e., relaxation, cognitive reframing, and self-soothing), and mindfulness skills, all grounded in pain-CBT theory (Darnall et al., 2021). The intervention will be delivered by a certified Empowered Relief instructor.