Epidemiology of chronic pain in Denmark: An update

Abstract

The most recent Danish health survey of 2005 is based on a region-stratified random sample of 10.916 individuals. Data were collected via personal interviews and self-administrated questionnaires. Respondents suffering from chronic pain were identified through the question 'Do you have chronic/long-lasting pain lasting 6 months or more?' The prevalence of chronic pain among individuals with a present or earlier cancer diagnosis was also assessed. In all, 7275 individuals (66.6%) completed a personal interview and 5552 individuals (50.9% of the original sample) completed and returned the self-administrated questionnaire. The same questions were included in the survey in 2000 and, hence, it was possible to evaluate the trends in the past five years. In all, 20.2% of the adult Danish population has chronic pain. From year 2000-2005 the prevalence of chronic pain has remained stable. Generally, chronic pain was associated with female gender and increasing age. Higher prevalence of chronic pain were associated with being divorced, separated or widowed, having less than 10 years of education and high BMI. Musculoskeletal diseases (66.8%) were the most common cause for chronic pain and most persons with chronic pain rated their health and quality of life as poor. Persons with earlier or present cancer diagnosis were more likely to report chronic pain. A substantial part of persons with chronic pain were not satisfied with the examinations and treatments offered. In conclusion, over a five-year period the prevalence of chronic pain in Denmark has remained stable, but high.

Chronic pain, associated factors, and impact on daily life: are there differences between the sexes?

“…This finding corroborates the majority of studies that compared prevalence of chronic pain between the sexes 9,21,27 . In Spain, prevalence of chronic pain was 31.4% in women and 14.8% in men 27 .…”

“…In Spain, prevalence of chronic pain was 31.4% in women and 14.8% in men 27 . In Denmark, 22.4% of women reported suffering from chronic pain 9 . In France, the prevalence was 28.2% in men and 35% in women 28 .…”

“…Most other epidemiological studies have also found a lower prevalence of chronic pain among individuals with more schooling 7,8,9,10,11 . However, studies that specifically compared men and women and chronic pain found no differences between the sexes in relation to schooling 12,21 .…”

“…As for marital status, in women, divorce and widowhood were associated with higher prevalence of chronic pain, while among men, single individuals were more affected. Most studies have shown an association between increased risk of chronic pain and divorce 7,8,9 . Sá et al 21 also found a higher prevalence of chronic pain in divorced and widowed individuals and lower prevalence among single persons.…”

“…Cross-sectional studies suggest that increases in chronic pain are associated mainly with female gender, aging, and low socioeconomic status 7 . Although most studies found an association between increased pain and female gender 7,8,9,10,11 , few epidemiological studies have compared how men and women experience pain 7,12,13 .…”