Nível de conhecimento sobre dor entre acadêmicos do curso de fisioterapia dos campi da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora

Abstract

The concept and study of pain has expanded in recent years. For a more satisfactory therapeutic approach to patients with pain, it is necessary that higher education institutions ensure the adequate preparation of future health professionals. The present study aims to identify the level of knowledge about neurophysiology, beliefs and attitudes about pain among students from different periods of the Physical Therapy undergraduate courses at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF). For this purpose, 95 undergraduate students of the Physical Therapy course at the UFJF, Governador Valadares (GV) and Juiz de Fora (JF) campuses, regularly enrolled in the first semester of 2021, answered an electronic questionnaire. The questionnaire contained 43 questions about sociodemographic characteristics, personal experience of chronic pain, pain teaching at UFJF, the "Neurophysiological Pain Questionnaire" (NPQ) and the "Attitudes and Beliefs Scale". The data were evaluated considering the significance level of 95%. As a result, the level of knowledge about the neurophysiology of pain was similar among students who self-reported being in the early or late course periods. The mean NPQ response score was 7 points, representing a mean of 58.8% of correct answers. Teaching about pain at UFJF was considered regular, and there is greater conviction in the relationship between pain and tissue damage. Despite this, most students agree that exercises and pain education can collaborate to treatment. The students considered that the pain content deserves a prominent place in the curriculum of the physical therapy course, through an inter or transdisciplinary approach. The self-report of previous participation in courses/symposia/lectures/live on chronic pain did not improve the level of knowledge about neurophysiology of pain. In conclusion, the level of knowledge about neurophysiology, beliefs and attitudes about pain among students from different periods of the Physical Therapy undergraduate courses at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) is insufficient or with misconceptions. Further studies are needed to obtain more consistent results.