The influence of perceived pain on satisfaction with community participation after hospital discharge

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between pain and satisfaction with community participation for patients with stroke approximately 4 months after discharge from inpatient medical rehabilitation. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study from 2001 to 2002 using information from the IT HealthTrack database. SETTING: Community based. PARTICIPANTS: The study included 1673 patients with stroke aged 40 years or older discharged from inpatient medical rehabilitation. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary measures included pain ratings and satisfaction with community participation. RESULTS: The sample was 49.4% female and 81.1% non-Hispanic white. One third of the sample reported mild to severe pain. Pain ratings showed a significant and inverse association with satisfaction with community participation. The association remained significant with adjustment for possible confounding factors and with stratification by right and left body involvement. Each 1-level increase in pain rating score (range, 0-10) was associated with a 12% decreased odds ratio (OR=.88; 95% confidence interval, .84-.93) of being satisfied with community participation after adjustment for age, sex, marital status, ethnicity, and motor and cognitive functional status. CONCLUSIONS: In persons with stroke, high pain rating scores were significantly associated with lower satisfaction with community participation. Effective pain management may increase level of satisfaction with community participation in persons with stroke.