Sep 19 2008
Interesting facts about chronic pain
I came across the American Pain Foundation and they provided some very interesting statistics about its impact on quality of life as well as the issue of pain management.
The first is a 2006 survey, which included 303 individuals with chronic pain who took opioids, and evaluated not only patient attitudes but the “impact that chronic pain has on patients who sought care from their physician and are currently using an opioid to treat their pain.” Here were some of the key findings:
- More than half of respondents (51%) felt they had little or no control over their pain.
- Almost two-thirds (59%) reported an impact on their overall enjoyment of life.
- More than three quarters of patients (77%) reported feeling depressed.
- 70% said they have trouble concentrating.
- 86% reported an inability to sleep well.
- More than half (52%) said their chronic pain has put a strain on relationships with family and friends.
- Nearly 70% said their pain has a great deal of impact on their work.
What are my thoughts on those seven bullet points? I personally don’t feel like I have much control over my pain. I can make it a little better with ice, elevation, and medications, but it doesn’t remove the pain. Sometimes my pain gets worse when I am on my knee too long, but sometimes it flares up and I have no idea why. I would certainly agree that pain has impacted my overall quality of life. I currently am not depressed, but at one point I would have considered myself depressed. I have trouble concentrating a lot, especially in class. Chronic pain makes it harder for me to fall asleep, but once I’m sleep I’m usually set.
In terms of strains on relationships, I wholeheartedly agree. While friends and family say that they want to know when things are bad, I can’t truly let them know especially my college friends. If I did, I’d never get invited out! I’d be known as the party pooper. So instead, I try to hide it the best I can and try to make it to the evening. Now, my mom always knows how I’m truly feeling and that has brought us much closer together, but it’s different. Your mom is supposed to love you no matter what and it’s very hard for 20 to 21-year-olds to really understand what this level of pain is like. I do my very best to not let the pain interfere with work, but it has. Whether it’s missing a week because of surgery or asking to do the desk work that day instead of being on my feet, it has a negative impact on what I can and cannot do at work.
Next is an eye-opening look at the problems felt by nurses and physicians as they try to care for and prescribe medications to patients with chronic pain. It’s scary to think about.
In May 2008, the American Pain Foundation released a report outlining critical barriers in appropriate opioid prescribing for pain management and called for a more balanced perspective of the risks and benefits of these medications in practice and policy. Results from a survey completed by nearly 240 primary care physicians, pain specialists, nurse practitioners and physicians assistant were highlighted in the report including some startling statistics:
• 76% believe that moderate-to-severe non-cancer pain is undertreated in the United States
• 77% say that today’s drug control laws/policies impact their opioid prescribing practices
• Only 9% are comfortable with their level of understanding about the current legal environment for opioid use
Not only have I had to fight misconceptions about pain medication as I have taken Vicodin daily since 2005, but I had to deal with that from my pediatrician before I was old enough to move on to an adult doctor. She scared my mom that I’d become addicted and to try to get me off pain medication as soon as possible. That went against everything my pain specialist had said and was just awful advice. The pain specialists have been specifically trained to deal with all of this, but it’s the primary care physicians that don’t understand what’s okay and what’s not in pain treatment especially concerning opioid use.
A 2005 ABC News and USA poll covered a variety of issues under the chronic pain umbrella as part as their week long “Fight Against Pain” series. Here are the most relevant findings to this blog:
- Nearly six in 10 Americans, 58%, say they’ve tried prayer to deal with pain, about as many as have taken prescription drugs. And of those who’ve tried it, half say prayer has worked very well for them in terms of pain relief - tying it with prescription drugs as the top-ranked approach for efficacy
- While prayer is clearly a source of comfort to many in pain, it’s not a replacement for other therapies. People who’ve prayed for pain relief are more apt than others also to take prescription drugs for pain; to have tried other pain therapies; to have seen a doctor for pain; and to report chronic, severe or frequent pain. Prayer thus looks like an additional approach for those with greater pain problems, rather than a replacement.
- Chronic pain is exceedingly rare among young adults - just 3 % of those under 30 report it. Instead they’re most apt by far to report acute or specific injury-related pain - seven in 10 young adults say their last pain experience was acute. Their elders (and not just senior citizens, but also those in their 30s through 50s) are much more likely to report recurrent or chronic pain.
While I can say that medication is the sure fire way to reduce pain to some extent in a quick fashion, I find prayer to be the most comforting thing I could do when I’m struggling. It gives me hope and helps me not to feel as alone as I sometimes think I am. It’s an incredible source of comfort to me.
And according to this poll, 3% of young adults report chronic pain. And here young adults are being classified as 30 and under. Just 3%! That puts those of us who have been dealing with chronic pain as teens in a very unusual and thus more challenging position.