Background & Aims
Meta-analytic results show that individuals who engage in self-injury have lower pain sensitivity. However, these reviews have so far focused on adult populations. Self-injury typically begins in the early teen years and is most prevalent among youth and adolescents. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a meta-analysis on pain sensitivity in individuals between aged 10-24 with self-injurious behavior.
Methods
MEDLINE (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection (Clarivate) and PsycINFO (Ovid) were last searched on 9 February 2023. Titles, abstracts, and full texts of studies were independently screened by multiple observers. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guideline was followed. Quality assessment was performed using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale.
Results
Of 4238 screened studies, 181 full-text articles were retrieved whereof 11 studies fulfilled the criteria (n=785).
Conclusions
Youth with self-injury show higher pain threshold (p = 0.006) and higher pain tolerance (p < .001) compared to healthy controls.
References
Koenig, J., Thayer, J. F., & Kaess, M. (2016). A meta-analysis on pain sensitivity in self-injury. Psychological Medicine, 46(8), 1597–1612. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291716000301
Ammerman, B. A., Jacobucci, R., Kleiman, E. M., Uyeji, L. L., & McCloskey, M. S. (2018). The Relationship Between Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Age of Onset and Severity of Self-Harm. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 48(1), 31–37. https://doi.org/10.1111/sltb.12330
Presenting Author
Moa Pontén
Poster Authors
Moa Pontén
PhD
Karolinska Institutet
Lead Author
Topics
- Systematic Reviews/Meta-Analysis