Does knee pain in the community behave like a regional pain syndrome?
OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether knee pain in the community behaves like a regional pain syndrome, as judged by its associations with mental health, self- rated health (SRH), and beliefs about prognosis. METHODS: An 18-month postal follow-up was conducted in 1,798 working-aged subjects, sampled from the community. At baseline questions were asked about pain in the knee lasting >/=1 day in the previous 12 months, mental health (Short-Form 36), somatising tendency (elements of the Brief Symptom Inventory), SRH, and concern about 12-month prognosis. At follow-up we asked about knee pain in the last four weeks, and whether it had been present on >/=14 days or prescription-treated. Associations with incidence and persistence were explored using logistic regression. RESULTS: The 1,256 participants (70% response) comprised 468 with knee pain at baseline and 788 without. Among the former, 49% had persistent knee pain at follow-up, while among the latter, 15% reported new symptoms. Incident p
