Anxiety Sensitivity: Its Relationship to Functional Status in Patients with Chronic Pain

Anxiety sensitivity (AS) is the fear of anxiety-related bodily sensations based on the belief that they are harmful. The purpose of this study was to examine how AS contributes to functional status in chronic pain populations. This study examined the relationship between functional status and AS, demographic, work-related, and pain-related variables in 88 chronic pain patients. Dependent measures of functional status were the SF-36 scales for physical functioning, mental health, vitality, and social functioning. Variables were entered into regression analyses according to category. Significant variables were included in subsequent regressions. AS significantly contributed to lower levels of vitality and poorer social functioning, and was the only variable to significantly contribute to poorer psychological functioning. These results suggest that AS plays an important role in several aspects of functioning in chronic pain patients, and therefore may be a useful concept to be included in pain assessment batteries.