Pain Neuroscience Education in Physiotherapy Students: Effects on Knowledge and Attitudes

November 27, 2025 updated by: Ayşe ŞİMŞEK

Investigation of the Effects of Pain Neuroscience Education on Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Pain in Physiotherapy Students

This study aims to examine the immediate effects of a single-session Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) program on pain-related knowledge and attitudes among undergraduate physiotherapy students. The PNE session focuses on explaining pain neurophysiology, chronic pain mechanisms, central sensitization, and the biopsychosocial factors that influence pain. Participants complete validated questionnaires assessing pain knowledge, pain-related beliefs, and attitudes before and immediately after the intervention. The purpose of the study is to determine whether a brief educational session can produce immediate improvements in pain knowledge and pain-related attitudes across different academic years in physiotherapy students.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This study is a retrospective registration of a completed pre-post interventional study conducted among undergraduate physiotherapy students. The objective of the research was to evaluate the immediate effects of a single-session Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) program on pain-related knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes.

The PNE session lasted approximately 70 minutes and was delivered by a physiotherapist trained in pain neuroscience and the biopsychosocial model. The session covered pain neurophysiology, the distinction between acute and chronic pain, central sensitization, factors contributing to pain experiences, and the role of cognition, emotions, and behaviors within the biopsychosocial framework.

Participants completed self-report outcome measures at two time points:

Baseline (pre-intervention)

Immediately after the intervention

Outcome measures included validated instruments assessing pain knowledge and pain-related beliefs:

Revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire (rNPQ)

Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire (KNAP)

Health Care Providers' Pain and Impairment Relationship Scale (HC-PAIRS)

Pain Attitudes and Beliefs Scale for Physiotherapists (PABS-PT)

The study followed a single-group design with no control group and no randomization.

The study was conducted between April and October 2025 at Karabük University, Turkey. Ethical approval was obtained from the Karabük University Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Committee (Decision No: 2025/2154), and written informed consent was obtained from all participants prior to data collection.

The results of this research aim to contribute to the understanding of how a brief PNE session may provide immediate improvements in pain-related knowledge and attitudes among physiotherapy students. The findings may support the integration of structured pain education approaches into physiotherapy curricula and early clinical training programs.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

155

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
      • Karabük, Turkey (Türkiye), 78050
        • Karabük University Faculty of Health Sciences

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Undergraduate physiotherapy and rehabilitation students (1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year)
  • Willing to participate and able to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Having previously received formal Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Pain Neuroscience Education Group
Experimental: Pain Neuroscience Education Group Arm Description: Single-group intervention arm receiving a 70-minute Pain Neuroscience Education session. Outcome measures were collected at baseline and immediately after the intervention.
Behavioral: Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE)
The program consists of a single 70-minute Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) session, which includes explanations of pain neurophysiology, central sensitization, biopsychosocial pain concepts, and cognitive-behavioral factors influencing chronic pain. Delivered by a trained certified physiotherapist.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire (rNPQ)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after the intervention
The rNPQ assessed participants' knowledge of pain neurophysiology. The scale measures participants' knowledge level on topics such as pain mechanisms, neuropathic pain, central sensitization, and biopsychosocial components of pain. The scale consists of a total of 12 questions with "true", "false", or "I don't know" answers. Incorrect answers and answers marked as undecided receive 0 points. The scale is scored between 0 and 12, and pain knowledge increases as the score increases.
Baseline and immediately after the intervention
Knowledge and Attitudes of Pain Questionnaire (KNAP)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after the intervention
Participants' knowledge and attitudes towards pain were measured with the KNAP. The KNAP scale consists of 30 questions and is scored on a six-point Likert scale ranging from completely disagree to completely agree. The total score is between 0 and 150 points. A higher score from the scale indicates knowledge and attitudes that better reflect modern pain neuroscience.
Baseline and immediately after the intervention
Pain Attitudes and Beliefs Scale for Physiotherapists (PABS-PT)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after the intervention
The PABS-PT was used to distinguish between biomedical and biopsychosocial orientations towards treating low back pain in physiotherapists. The scale is scored as 1 = strongly disagree and 6 = strongly agree. Treatment orientation is measured in biomedical (factor 1) and biopsychosocial (factor 2) subscales. Subscale scores are calculated by simply summing the scores corresponding to the selected response for each item. The subscale with the highest score indicates the participant's dominant treatment orientation
Baseline and immediately after the intervention
Health Care Providers' Pain Impairment Relationship Scale (HC-PAIRS )
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after the intervention
The HC-PAIRS was developed to examine the impact of attitudes and beliefs of health professionals on the clinical management of chronic nonspecific low back pain.The scale consists of 12 items, ranging from 1 (completely disagree) to 7 (completely agree). After items 1 and 5 are reversed, the total score is calculated and ranges from 12 to 84. Higher scores indicate a strong belief that low back pain is a legitimate cause of activity limitation and disability, and negative attitudes and beliefs of health professionals towards low back pain.
Baseline and immediately after the intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Ayşe ŞİMŞEK

Investigators

  • Study Director: Ayşe Şimşek, MSc, Karabuk University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

April 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 31, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

October 31, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

November 27, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 27, 2025

First Posted (Estimated)

December 9, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

December 9, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 27, 2025

Last Verified

November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • KBU-2025-2154

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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