FEATURES OF PSYCHO-EMOTIONAL DISORDERS IN YOUNG PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM CHRONIC RADICULOPATHIES OF VERTEBROGENIC GENESIS

According to current notions, the development of neuropathic pain includes the mechanisms of peripheral and central sensitization, the emergence of a generator of pathologically enhanced excitation, pathological illogical system, on the basis of which a specific clinical form of pain is formed. The neuropathic nature of pain is observed in 30−40 % of the patients suffering from back pain. In order to study the psycho−emotional disorders in relation to the duration of chronic pain in young people suffering from the vertebrogenic lumbosacral radiculopathy, 97 people were examined. To estimate pain syndrome a visual−analog scale and DN4 questionnaire was used, for reactive and personal anxiety level we involved the Spielberger − Khanin test, the Beck's inventory was applied for the depression level, MFI−20 for objectification of asthenic manifestations was utilized. Complaints of the patients were divided into specific (nociceptive and neuropathic pain syndrome) and nonspecific. Non−specific complaints in the examined patients included disorders of the emotional sphere, which had the following structure: asthenic, anxiety, depressive and their combinations, as well as the presence of somatoform symptoms, which was confirmed by neuropsychological testing. In the analysis of the dependence of frequency and severity of emotional disorders on the duration of chronic pain, the patterns were found to increase the frequency of all emotional dysfunctions, reduce the severity of anxiety and increase depression with the same severity of asthenic ones. According to the results of this study, the following conclusions were made: the severity of anxiety disorders decreases with increasing duration of the disease, and the depressive disorders increase. The severity of asthenic syndrome did not differ significantly in this category of patients with any duration of chronic pain. Key words: chronic vertebrogenic lumbosacral radiculopathies, asthenic, anxious, depressive disorders, young patients.