{
  "abstract": "Background\n\nPain neuroscience education (PNE) promotes a biopsychosocial understanding of pain among health-professional students, yet evidence for its long-term effects outside high-income countries remains limited. This study evaluated the immediate and six-month effects of a single PNE lecture on pain knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and clinical recommendations in Jordanian physiotherapy students.Methods\n\nA parallel-group randomized controlled trial was conducted with first- and second-year physiotherapy students. Students were randomized (1:1; 60 per group) to a 70-minute PNE lecture or an attention-matched musculoskeletal red flags lecture. Primary outcomes were pain knowledge (Revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire [RNPQ]) and pain-related attitudes (modified Health Care Providers' Pain and Impairment Relationship Scale [HC-PAIRS]). The secondary outcome was guideline-concordant recommendations assessed using a validated vignette. Analyses included linear and logistic mixed-effects models, with responder analyses using minimal clinically important difference thresholds to estimate numbers needed to treat (NNTs).Results\n\nAll students (N = 120) completed the study with no attrition. Significant group × time interactions were observed for pain knowledge and attitudes (both p < 0.001). Post-intervention, the PNE group demonstrated higher pain knowledge scores than the control group (adjusted mean difference = 2.46, 95% CI 1.68-3.24) and more favorable attitudes (adjusted mean difference = - 7.54, 95% CI - 10.62 to - 4.46). At six months, knowledge gains remained statistically significant (1.20, 95% CI 0.25-2.15; p = 0.020), while the between-group difference for attitudes was no longer statistically significant (-3.60, 95% CI - 7.25 to 0.05; p = 0.060). Guideline-concordant clinical recommendations improved immediately after PNE (adjusted ORs 2.95-6.18) but were not sustained at follow-up (all p > 0.05). Responder analyses demonstrated substantial immediate educational benefit (NNT 2.7 for knowledge, 3.6 for attitudes), which decreased at six months, consistent with attenuation of intervention effects over time.Conclusion\n\nA single 70-minute PNE session produced significant and clinically meaningful immediate improvements in pain knowledge, attitudes, and guideline-concordant clinical recommendations. At six months, pain knowledge remained significantly improved, whereas the remaining effects attenuated. These findings support consideration of embedding PNE early within pre-licensure physiotherapy curricula. Future research should determine whether recursive reinforcement improves longer-term retention of educational gains.Trial registration\n\nThe study protocol was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT06821022) on February 6, 2025.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, The Hashemite University, P.O box 330127, Zarqa, 13133, Jordan. muhsen_a@hu.edu.jo.",
    "Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ahmad Muhsen",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3032-6410"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Bodor Bin Sheeha",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3634-8768"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fx7556ejyw21t.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1186/s12909-026-09994-y",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13689214",
  "id": "fx7556ejyw21t",
  "issns": [
    "1472-6920"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42919241",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "lcc",
      "LC8-6691"
    ],
    [
      "lcc",
      "R"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2736|Musculoskeletal pain and rehabilitation"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7171414127",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13689214?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13689214",
  "pmid": "42919241",
  "published": "2026-07-01",
  "publisher": "BMC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fx7556ejyw21t.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:21:02Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42919241",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42919241"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T13:46:05Z",
      "native_id": "94fde320714548ce98e302b7a5a82c5c",
      "source": "doaj",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-026-09994-y"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2736|Musculoskeletal pain and rehabilitation",
      "subfield": "pharmacology-toxicology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The impact of pain neuroscience education on physical therapy students' pain knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and clinical recommendations: a randomized controlled trial.",
  "title_text": "The impact of pain neuroscience education on physical therapy students' pain knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and clinical recommendations: a randomized controlled trial.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T13:46:05Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fx7556ejyw21t",
  "venue": "BMC medical education",
  "versions": []
}