Weather Can Affect Pain Tolerance

Summary: Temperature and barometric pressure are strongly related to cold pain tolerance and pressure pain tolerance, a new study reports.

Source: Wolters Kluwer Health

Can the weather affect pain from conditions like arthritis or migraine? It may sound like an old superstition – but on some standard quantitative sensory tests, weather-related factors do indeed affect pain tolerance, suggests a study in PAIN.

“Although observational, these findings suggest that weather has a causal, non-linear, dynamic effect on pain tolerance,” according to the new research, led by Erlend Hoftun Farbu, PhD student at UiT – The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø. But it remains unclear if the link between weather and pain involves physiological or psychological factors, or a combination of factors.

Weather-related factors affect two standard pain assessments

The study included participants in the Tromsø Study, an ongoing study of the health of people in that city in Northern Norway, located north of the Arctic Circle. About 19,500 participants, average age 57 years, were evaluated on two quantitative sensory tests, widely used in research studies.

The pressure pain tolerance test (PPT) measured the subjects’ ability to tolerate pain from steadily increasing pressure applied to the lower leg. The cold pain tolerance test (CPT) measured how long they could tolerate immersion of the hand in cold water.

Results of the pain tolerance tests were analyzed in relation to data on weather conditions – temperature, barometric pressure, precipitation, relative humidity, and wind speed. Associations between pain tolerance and meteorological factors were assessed, along with seasonal or shorter-term variations.

Overall, the PPT results showed no significant seasonal variation and were not strongly related to weather-related variables when considering the whole study period. However, the correlations varied depending on the time period studied.

The data suggested “non-random short-term variation” in PPT outcomes – the time frame of short-term variations  in PPT mirrored the time frame of the weather. Additionally, temperature and barometric pressure predicted future PPT values.

In contrast, the CPT results showed clear seasonal variation – subjects were able to tolerate cold-induced pain longer during colder times of year. Cold pain tolerance also varied with weather-related variables. “This fits nicely together with research on cold adaptation,” Mr. Farbu comments. “As you get used to cold, you might be able to tolerate more cold.”

He adds, “Temperature and barometric pressure seems to be most strongly related to CPT and PPT, and they predict future PPT. However, the effect of temperature is likely influenced by humidity and wind, as they might alter the heat loss.”

Many people, particularly those with chronic pain, believe that weather or weather-related factors can cause or aggravate episodes of pain. While some studies have supported associations between weather and pain, others have reached conflicting results.

This shows a woman standing next to a lake on a snowy day
Associations between pain tolerance and meteorological factors were assessed, along with seasonal or shorter-term variations. Image is in the public domain

“If we are correct about that the relationship is dynamic and non-linear, it might very well explain why many studies find small effects and conflicting results,” Mr. Farbu comments. “If an effect is changing over time and you average it over time, you might end up with no effect.”

The findings, especially for CPT, “should be considered when planning future studies on pain tolerance,” the researchers write. They discuss some ways in which weather might affect pain tolerance. One possible explanation is “central mechanisms,” with weather-related variables affecting parts of the brain involved in pain processing. Alternatively, weather might affect people’s mental status – as in seasonal depression, for example – which could affect their capacity to endure pain.

“In summary, it is unlikely that one singular mechanism can explain the variations in pain tolerance observed,” Mr. Farbu and coauthors conclude. “[I]t is more probable that this is the net result of many, possibly antagonistic, mechanisms.”

About this pain research news

Author: Connie Hughes
Source: Wolters Kluwer Health
Contact: Connie Hughes – Wolters Kluwer Health
Image: The image is in the public domain

Original Research: Closed access.
To tolerate weather and to tolerate pain two sides of the same coin? The Tromsø Study 7″ by Farbu, Erlend Hoftun et al. Pain


Abstract

To tolerate weather and to tolerate pain two sides of the same coin? The Tromsø Study 7

It is a common belief that weather affects pain. Therefore, we hypothesized that weather can affect pain tolerance.

This study used data from over 18,000 subjects aged 40 years or older from the general population, who participated in the Tromsø Study 7. They underwent a one-time assessment of cuff algometry pressure pain tolerance (PPT) and cold pain tolerance (CPT), tested with a cold pressor test.

The results showed a clear seasonal variation in CPT. The rate of withdrawal in the cold pressor test was up to 75% higher in months in the warmer parts of the year compared with January 2016. There was no seasonal variation in PPT.

The study not only found a nonrandom short-term variation in PPT but also indications of such a variation in CPT. The intrinsic timescale of this short-term variation in PPT was 5.1 days (95% % confidence interval 4.0-7.2), which is similar to the observed timescales of meteorological variables.

Pressure pain tolerance and CPT correlated with meteorological variables, and these correlations changed over time. Finally, temperature and barometric pressure predicted future values of PPT.

These findings suggest that weather has a causal and dynamic effect on pain tolerance, which supports the common belief that weather affects pain.

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