Dysfunctional attitudes and pain perception in migraine: investigating the mediating role of fear of disease progression

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of dysfunctional attitudes on pain perception in migraine sufferers, considering the mediating role of fear of disease progression. 200 migraine sufferers who were referred to neurology clinics in Mashhad City, Iran, were included using the convenience sampling method. Data were collected using the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale, McGill Pain, and Fear of Progression Questionnaire. Collected data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation test and structural equation modeling in SPSS and AMOS 21. The direct route of dysfunctional attitudes and fear of disease progression on pain perception as well as the direct route of dysfunctional attitudes on fear of disease progression were both positively significant (p < .001). Moreover, there was an indirect effect of dysfunctional attitudes on pain perception through the fear of the progression route in which 55% of the effect of dysfunctional attitudes on pain perception was attributed to the fear of disease progression. Dysfunctional attitudes may worsen pain perception in migraine sufferers, with fear of disease progression as a mediator.