Anxiety, pain catastrophizing, and pain outcomes among older adults with chronic orofacial pain

Although chronic orofacial pain (COFP) is common among older adults, the role of psychological factors in pain outcomes among this population has received limited attention. This study examined the role of anxiety and pain catastrophizing, two corelates of pain in other populations, in pain intensity and interference among 166 older adults with COFP (79% female, M_age = 68.84, SD = 5.56). Participants completed an online survey including measures of anxiety, pain catastrophizing, and pain intensity/interference. We applied mediation analyses to test indirect associations between anxiety and pain outcomes via pain catastrophizing. Results indicated that anxiety was positively associated with pain intensity and pain interference (bs =.70–1.12, ps <.05). There was also an indirect association between anxiety and pain interference through pain catastrophizing (b =.35, 95% CI [.0383,.7954]), indicating pain catastrophizing partially accounts for this relationship. Assessing and addressing anxiety and pain catastrophizing has the potential to improve treatment outcomes in this population.