Dr. Jonathan Greenberg, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School and a Research Staff Psychologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, has received a 2-year Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant (R21) award from the National Institute of Dental & Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) focused on developing the first web-based platform to address emotional distress, activity limitations, and pain among individuals with chronic orofacial pain.
Dedicated to advancing the understanding and treatment of neuropathic facial pain, the Facial Pain Association (FPA) promotes and supports research relevant to our community. We have partnered with Dr. Greenberg over the last three years, distributing surveys to people living with facial pain, which have resulted in five published manuscripts. In addition to the surveys, we are proud to share that the FPA submitted several letters of support, including one for the grant that has been funded for Dr. Greenberg’s project entitled “Development of “Face-Forward-Web”: A novel web-based program targeting pain-related outcomes among patients with heterogeneous chronic orofacial pain.”
“Face-Forward-Web” will be the first psychosocial intervention specifically for adults with chronic orofacial pain. The program was designed with your input, addressing key accessibility challenges of existing interventions, including talk-based therapy, which is often too painful for people with orofacial pain. Dr. Greenberg’s “Face-Foward-Web” has the potential to improve pain, pain-related activity limitations, and distress in our community.
In 2021, the Facial Pain Association helped distribute a survey, and thanks to your contributions, five publications have resulted, which you can explore through the links below. Additionally, the survey completed this year by the facial pain community is proving to be equally successful. In the coming days, we will be launching an updated Research page on our website, where you can learn more about the impact of your participation and stay informed on how to get involved.
References for published manuscripts based on FPA members:
Greenberg J, Bakhshaie J, Lovette BC, Vranceanu AM. Association between coping strategies and pain-related outcomes among individuals with chronic orofacial pain. J Pain Res. 2022; 15:431-442. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8846621/
Greenberg J, Spyropoulos DC, Bakhshaie J, Vranceanu AM. Mindfulness facets associated with orofacial pain outcomes. J Integ Complement Med. 2022 Jun 27 PMID: 35759376. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9595615
Lovette BC, Bannon SM, Spyropoulos DC, Vranceanu AM, Greenberg J. “I still suffer every second of every day”: A qualitative analysis of the challenges of living with chronic orofacial pain. J Pain Res. 2022 Jul 29;15:2139-2148. PMID: 35935679. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9346146
Grunberg VA, Reichman M, Lovette BC, Vranceanu AM, Greenberg J. “No one truly understands what we go through and how to treat it”: Lived experiences with medical providers among patients with orofacial pain. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Aug 20;19(16):10396. PMID: 36012029. https://www.mdpi.com/1787262
LaRowe LR, Bakhshaie J, Vranceanu AM, Greenberg J. Anxiety, pain catastrophizing, and pain outcomes among older adults with chronic orofacial pain. J Behav Med. 2024 Feb 21. PMID: 38383685. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38383685
Are you applying for a grant to research neuropathic facial pain, investigating a new treatment option for a clinical trial, or conducting a study to better understand current treatment options? We are here to support your efforts!
We provide non-financial support of your efforts in a number of ways, including:
- Letters of Support
- Community survey data
- Patient or caregiver advisory
- Focus groups
- Patient Registry data
- Survey/questionnaire distribution
Contact Brandi Underwood, Manager of Development, Research, and Advocacy at [email protected] or call (800) 923-3608.
