Poorer and less-educated older Americans are more likely to suffer from chronic pain than those with greater wealth and more education, but the disparity between the two groups is much greater than previously thought, according to new research.
An analysis of national data from nearly 20,000 persons in the Health and Retirement Study set out to examine pain disparities among older American adults.
They found high prevalence of chronic pain (27.3%) and that there were large disparities in pain among subsets defined by sex, education, and wealth.
Such patients not only have more pain but more severe pain as well.
People who didn't finish high school are 370% more likely to experience severe chronic pain than those with graduate degrees.
In 2011, the Institute of Medicine reported that chronic pain affects more people and costs the economy more money than heart disease, cancer, and diabetes combined.
Other analyses showed that race was not a determinant for those with chronic or severe pain.
Lastly, pain levels may also be predictive of subsequent death.
Jack Cush, MD, is the director of clinical rheumatology at the Baylor Research Institute and a professor of medicine and rheumatology at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. He is the executive editor of RheumNow.com. A version of this article first appeared on RheumNow, a news, information and commentary site dedicated to the field of rheumatology. Register to receive their free rheumatology newsletter.
Cush said he has not received compensation as an advisor or consultant on this subject.
Source Reference: Grol-Prokopczyk H "Sociodemographic disparities in chronic pain, based on 12-year longitudinal data" Pain 2017. DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000762.