Pain in Competitive Athletes With Physical Disabilities and Techniques for Its Management

There are psychosocial factors that affect pain, and therefore, psychological intervention techniques have been added to its usual pharmacological and physiotherapeutic treatment. Despite the abundant evidence that addresses psychosocial factors as clear mediators in the perception of pain, the use of psychological techniques for pain management in competitive athletes, and more especially in competitive athletes with physical disabilities, is scarce. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the perception of high-level competitive athletes with physical disability and sports agents (coaches, physiotherapists and psychologists).

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Key information

Conditions

Athletic Injuries Chronic Pain Neurologic Manifestations Pain Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Physical Disability Signs and Symptoms Wounds and Injuries

Age range

15 year–55 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Observational

Primary location

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Madrid, 28410, Spain

About this study

Qualitative study with in-depth interviews to find out the perception of sports agents (coaches, physiotherapists and psychologists) and athletes on how pain can affect the development of the sports career and to determine what techniques are known and/or implemented by sports agents (coaches, physiotherapists and psychologists) and athletes to manage pain.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

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

Inclusion criteria

For the athlete:

Physical disability.
Participate in high performance competition
Aged between 15 and 55 years old;

For the sports agents:

To exercise their profession with high performance athletes with physical disabilities

Exclusion criteria

Not meeting the above requirements

Treatment and study plan

Qualitative study. Pain in competitive athletes with physical disabilities and techniques for its management.

Other

This study used a qualitative, exploratory and descriptive methodology, with a semi-structured interview technique. The purpose was to respond to the specific objectives set out in this research from the perspective of competitive athletes and sports agents (physiotherapist, coach and psychologist). The thematic cores that served as a script for the interview were for the athletes and sports agents 1) sporting characteristics of the professionals; 2) perception of how pain affects this type of athlete and what repercussions it has on the development of their sporting career, and 3) knowledge of techniques and/or strategies for pain management (athlete, coach and psychologist).

The interviews were conducted via skype. After transcription of all the interviews, validation by the interviewees was applied for the reliability of the research. Two types of triangulation were applied to ensure the quality of the data.

Primary outcomes

Perception of pain in competitive athletes with physical disabilities and techniques for its management.(Qualitative methodology).

Time frame: 2 months

This research focuses on the subjective reality of individuals regarding their life experiences of how pain can affect a sporting career. It was based on a relativistic ontology, situated in an overlapping phenomenological and interpretative epistemology.The organisation of the information collected was carried out with "Nuevo NVivo" text processing software. The codes extracted from the thematic analysis were entered. Followed by a thematic analysis of their content and according to the specific objectives of the study. The steps followed were those proposed by Braun and Clarke (2006). Two types of triangulation were applied (Flick, 2014): investigator and data triangulation.

Pain has a negative impact on the athlete's sporting career: directly or indirectly through the psychological consequences. Athletes perceive that support of a psychologist are performance oriented and not pain management.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Universidad Politecnica de Madrid

Other

Registry information

Important dates

Study start: 2020
Primary completion: 2021
Study completion: 2021
First posted: Dec 12, 2022
Registry last updated: Dec 14, 2022

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.

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Completed