The effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy on socio-occupational compatibility and acceptance of symptoms in patients with painful Diabetic Neuropathy: A single-blind randomized clinical trial

Neuropathic pain is a common complication of diabetic patients. In these people, the pain reduces the work and social adjustment.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy on chronic pain acceptance and the work and social adjustment in patients with painful diabetic neuropathy.

This study was a quasi-experimental study in which patients were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. Participants were all patients with a diagnosis of diabetic neuropathy referred to the neurology department of Farabi Hospital in Kermanshah in 2019. Instruments included Chronic Pain Acceptance Questionnaire (CPAQ) and the Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS). The results of three phases of pre-test, post-test and follow-up were evaluated. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, the repeated measures ANOVA, and chi-square tests using SPSS version 22.

The results demonstrate that in the post-test and follow-up phases, acceptance and commitment therapy could improve pain acceptance and the work and social adjustment in the intervention group as compared to controls. In the acceptance variable, the test results within the group showed that the effect of time (P=0.003, F=6.48) and the interactive effect of time and group (P=0.001, F=12.49) were significant. Also in the variables of work and social adjustment, the effect of time (P=0.046, F=3.21) and the interactive effect of time and group (P=0.028, F=3.74) were reported (p>0.001).

Acceptance and commitment therapy can be used as a psychological intervention along with drug therapy to improve the work and social adjustment and acceptance symptoms in patients with painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN).