The prevalence and perception of pain amongst hospital in‐patients

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to describe the prevalence and perceptions of pain and pain management amongst hospital in-patients. A cross-sectional descriptive survey of 205 patients was conducted. Presence and severity of pain was assessed using verbal descriptor and visual analogue scales, and perceptions of pain were assessed using multi-item scales. Although the severity of pain reported was consistent across age groups and clinical areas, women in the study sample were significantly more likely to report high levels of pain than men. Differences in how men and women communicate their pain were observed, with women indicating that they were less willing to ask for help with their pain. Results suggest that pain continues to be an important problem for a large number of men and women in hospital, and that the experience of pain impacts negatively upon their well-being. Gender differences in the experience of and response to pain remain important considerations for clinical nurses who have major responsibilities for the management of pain in hospitalized patients.

Gender Differences Associated with Pain Characteristics and Treatment in Taiwanese Oncology Outpatients

“…Our finding that males reported higher levels of least pain and current pain compared to females is inconsistent with previous research on patients with cancer-related pain (Yates et al, 1998;Dao & LeResche, 2000). Several possible alternatives may explain these findings.…”

“…Many studies have explored gender differences in the reporting of pain, finding that females usually have reported more severe pain, a higher frequency of pain, and pain of longer duration than males (Yates et al, 1998;Dao & LeResche, 2000). The absence of a gender difference in the level of worse pain in the current study is consistent with Miaskowski's research; however, the inconsistent findings in the literature suggest that further studies are warranted (Miaskowski, 2004).…”

“…Much research has focused on acute pain management, indicating that that there may be gender differences in pain perception and responses (Yates, 1998;Keefe et al, 2004;Dao & LeResche, 2000) as well as in analgesic efficacy (Fillingim & Maixner, 1995;Miaskowski et al, 2000;Miaskowski & Levine, 1999). While pain is experienced by approximately 38% to 90% of cancer patients (Grond et al, 1994;Ger et al, 1998), research has suggested the need for better programmatic efforts in providing cancerpain relief for Taiwanese outpatients (Chang et al, 2002;Lai et al, 2002, Liang et al, 2010.…”

“…Some studies have reported that female experience greater pain intensity than male do (Yates, 1998;Dao & LeResche, 2000), and that females also reported a significantly greater impact from pain compared to males in terms of physical wellbeing (Yates, 1998). Furthermore, one study reported that compared to males, females reported more frequent analgesic use (Eggen, 1993).…”

Taking into account the observers’ uncertainty: a graduated approach to the credibility of the patient’s pain evaluation

“…Yates et al, 1998;Visentin et al, 2005;Breivik et al, 2006). The ineffective management of pain has been ascribed to a range of factors, and among them a key role has been attributed to inaccurate assessment (e.g.…”