# Sleep, Pain, Active Social Life, and Inflammation (SPAI)

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA · 2023 · $513,812

## Abstract

Abstract
Chronic pain is a prognostic marker of illness and imposes a substantial burden on the healthcare system,
affecting approximately 20-30% of US adults. Sleep problems commonly co-occur with chronic pain, yet little is
known of how sleep impacts chronic pain. Social engagement and inflammation have relationships with both
sleep and chronic pain, but no study has examined these behavioral and biological mechanisms underlying the
impact of sleep on chronic pain. This R01 initiates a multi-cohort study to examine the extent to which the impact
of sleep on chronic pain is mediated by social lifestyles and inflammation. In this study, we take a sleep health
perspective to capture multiple sleep characteristics critical to chronic pain (regularity, satisfaction, alertness,
timing, efficiency, and duration). Based on multiple sleep variables captured by self-report, actigraphy, and/or
polysomnography, we will identify “sleep health profiles” (the composite number of sleep problems or latent
groups with similar sleep characteristics across multiple dimensions) and link them to chronic pain outcomes.
Our sleep profile approach has advantages because it can consider multiple sleep problems that may co-occur
within individuals, and may differentially impact pain outcomes. Leveraging three NIH-funded projects (Midlife
in the United States Study-MIDUS, Outcomes of Sleep Disorders in Older Men-MrOS, and Multicenter
Osteoarthritis Study-MOST), we examine multiple common chronic pain conditions prevalent in adult populations
(any chronic pain, back pain, and knee pain) and their multiple manifestations (frequency, severity, and
sensitization). This can help determine whether the associations between sleep health profiles and chronic pain
emerge across different pain conditions. Aim 1 will examine the longitudinal impact of sleep health profiles on
subsequent changes in pain for three separate pain outcomes. We hypothesize that poor sleep health profiles
are associated with: [MIDUS] new onset of any chronic pain and/or an increase in pain interference among
midlife and older adults; [MrOS] new onset of back pain and/or increases in the frequency and severity of back
pain among older men; [MOST] increases in knee pain severity and clinical sensitization among older
men/women with the risk of osteoarthritis over time. Aim 2 will examine behavioral and biological mechanisms
underlying the impact of sleep health profiles on changes in pain. We hypothesize that poor sleep health profiles
are associated with more chronic pain over time mediated by lower diversity in social activities (i.e., a less active
social life) or by a higher risk of systemic inflammation. Aim 3 will examine independent and joint effects of
behavioral and biological mechanisms underlying the impact of sleep health profiles on changes in pain. Our
multi-cohort approach also allows us to detect potential social disparities in sleep and chronic pain by aggregating
relevant racial and sex sub-...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10585655
- **Project number:** 1R01HL163226-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Soomi Lee
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $513,812
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2023-02-20 → 2023-08-07

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10585655

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10585655, Sleep, Pain, Active Social Life, and Inflammation (SPAI) (1R01HL163226-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10585655. Licensed CC0.

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