Health Complaints in Adolescence and Future Persistent Musculoskeletal Pain

Persistent musculoskeletal (MSK) pain in adolescence is associated with disability, absence from school and reduced quality of life. We know little about risk factors and underlying mechanisms of persistent MSK pain in this age group. For example, the effect of other health complaints on the development of persistent MSK pain is scarcely investigated. In this prospective cohort study, data from the Fit Futures study on Norwegian adolescents (15-19 years old) will be used to investigate whether health complaints and an accumulation of health complaints in adolescence are associated with the incidence of persistent MSK pain two years later.

Completed

Looking for future studies?

Notify Me

Key information

Conditions

Musculoskeletal Pain Muscular Diseases Musculoskeletal Diseases Neurologic Manifestations Pain Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Signs and Symptoms

Age range

15 year–19 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

About this study

There is a need of knowledge on risk factors and underlying mechanisms of persistent MSK pain in adolescence to increase our understanding and facilitate preventative strategies.

OBJECTIVE:

The aims of this prospective cohort study are to investigate whether health complaints and an accumulation of health complaints in adolescence, are associated with the incidence of persistent MSK pain two years later.

METHODS:

This will be a prospective study using data from the Fit Futures study conducted in the northern Norway. Adolescents (15-19 years) were recruited to the first survey (Fit Futures 1, FF1) in 2010/2011, and followed up to years later (Fit Futures 2, FF2). Data was collected through a comprehensive questionnaire and physical tests.

The exposures will be common health complaints in adolescence measured in FF1, including self-reported asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic eczema, abdominal pain, headache and psychological distress (Hopkins Symptom Checklist).

Potential confounders will include age, sex and parents' socioeconomic status.

Statistical analyses:

Histograms and QQ-plots will be used to investigate the distribution of data. Normally distributed data will be presented with means and standard deviations (SD), while median and range will be used to present skewed data. Categorical data will be presented as counts and percentages. Missing data in exposures and confounders will be considered handled with multiple imputation. Participants with missing data on outcome will be excluded from the analyses. Baseline characteristics of adolescents lost to follow-up or with incomplete outcome data in FF2 will be compared to baseline characteristics of respondents.

A two-year incidence rate of persistent MSK pain will be presented.

Logistic regression analyses, providing odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), will be used to investigate the association between health complaints (measured in FF1) and later persistent MSK pain (measured in FF2). The association between health complaints and persistent MSK pain will first be investigated separately for each complaint (asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic eczema, psychological distress, headache and abdominal pain), secondly as the number of health complaints regardless of type (using an ordinal count variable). All logistic regression analyses will be conducted as crude and adjusted analyses. Statistical analyses will be conducted with STATA statistical software system.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

Adolescents, 15-19 years old, participating in Fit Futures 1

Exclusion criteria

Age > 19 years at baseline
Adolescents reporting persistent musculoskeletal pain at baseline

Treatment and study plan

No intervention

Other

No intervention

Primary outcomes

Persistent musculoskeletal pain

Time frame: Two years

Persistent musculoskeletal pain was measured at the 2-year follow-up by the questions: "Do you have persistent or constantly recurring pain that has lasted for three months or more?", "if you have persistent and constantly recurring pain that has lasted for 3 months or more, how often do you have this pain?" and "if you have persistent or constantly recurring pain that has lasted for 3 months or more, where does it hurt?". Persistent musculoskeletal pain will in this study be defined as pain that persist or constantly recur on a weekly basis or more often, for minimum three months, in one or more of the following pain sites; neck, jaw/temporormandibular joint, upper back, lower back, chest, shoulder, arm/elbow, hand, hip, thigh/knee/shin, ankle/foot.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Oslo Metropolitan University

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Do Health Complaints in Adolescence Increase the Risk of Future Persistent Musculoskeletal Pain? Analyses From the Population-based Fit Futures Study

Important dates

Study start: 2010
Primary completion: 2013
Study completion: 2013
First posted: Sep 8, 2021
Registry last updated: Oct 18, 2021

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

Published trials that share one or more normalized conditions with this study.

Completed