Pain coping in Latino populations

J Pain. 2009 Oct;10(10):1012-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jpain.2009.03.004.

Abstract

Although there has been a rapid increase in Latino populations in the United States over the last 10 years, health research with Latino cultural groups is sorely lacking. In the area of pain-coping research, one consequence of the limited research is that very little is known about pain coping among Latinos. The purpose of this paper is to review the existing literature on pain coping in Latino populations, and to propose new directions for the future study of pain coping in Latino populations. This review is divided into 4 sections. In the first section, the challenges of defining Latino populations are discussed. In the second section, the current literature on pain coping in Latinos is reviewed. Third, we discuss the implications of existing findings for pain-coping assessment and pain treatment. Finally, we offer ideas for future research on pain coping in Latino populations.

Perspective: In this review article, we identify gaps in our current understanding of pain coping in Latino cultural groups, and associated implications for pain assessment and treatment. We also highlight potential directions for future pain-coping research with Latino populations.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adaptation, Psychological*
  • Analgesics / therapeutic use
  • Attitude to Health / ethnology
  • Hispanic or Latino / classification
  • Hispanic or Latino / psychology*
  • Hispanic or Latino / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Pain / epidemiology
  • Pain / ethnology*
  • Pain / psychology*
  • Pain Measurement / methods
  • Quality of Health Care / statistics & numerical data
  • Quality of Health Care / trends
  • Religion
  • Self Care / psychology
  • Self Care / statistics & numerical data
  • Self Care / trends
  • Social Support

Substances

  • Analgesics