Analyzing electronic momentary assessment data on chronic pain and weather conditions : a first look

Although scientific evidence is scarce, patients affected by chronic masticatory muscle pain often report increased pain in response to changes in weather conditions. The aim of the present study was to assess a potential relationship between pain intensity and meteorological factors, through a newly developed, portable device, in this population. Seven female subjects diagnosed with myofascial pain of the masticatory muscles participated in the study. Each patient was provided with a portable data logger that recorded and stored weather variables every 15 minutes. Patients were asked to record the level of perceived pain on an electronic visual analogue scale (VAS) every hour. The relationship between meteorological variables and pain scores was investigated using separate generalized least squares regression models with a correlation structure estimated via autoregressive integrated moving average models.