Emotional processing and its relationship to chronic low back pain: Results from a case-control study

Chronic back pain patients scored significantly higher in the overall EPS-25 score (p < 0.001) with an effect size of 0.33. In addition, there were significant differences in four factors - impoverished emotional experience, unregulated emotion, unprocessed emotion, and suppression, with effect sizes ranging from 0.20 to 0.44. The results suggest that dysfunctional emotional processing, particularly with regard to the suppression of emotions, is associated with CLBP. Clinicians should critically consider the role of emotional processing in their patients' evaluation and management. Future research using a prospective cohort should assess the role of emotional processing as a predictor in the development of chronic back pain.