Americans and Chronic Pain

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that 1 in 3 Americans suffer from chronic pain. That number translates to more than 116 million people in the United States reporting persistent pain that lasts weeks or even years.

Dr. Philip Pizzo, Dean of Stanford University medical school wrote the report in 2011. Dr. Pizzo based his report on research her conducted while he was chairman of an Institute of Medicine panel which is a division of the National Academy of Sciences and conducts research on health issues at the request of the United States Congress. The study found that the three most common areas of reported pain were the neck and the upper and lower back. A high rate of persistent head aches was reported as well.

Dr. Pizzo and his co-authors are calling for a national public health campaign to educate both the public and health care providers about chronic pain and related issues. Authors of this study cite lack of access to pain management specialists, lack of education about chronic pain treatment and insensitivity about chronic pain by health care providers and the public as three of the issues that need to be address in a public health campaign. They call on primary care physicians to take up the slack in patient treatment left by a shortage of pain specialists in the United States, pointing out that as the population gets older, the problem will only increase.

Critics of the study disagree with the findings and express concern about the number of patients who become addicted and overdose on prescription pain killers. Doctor’s offices and emergency rooms have a high number of patients reporting pain due to drug seeking behavior. Many are overmedicated. With the “pop a pill society” culture of today, where people just want medication to feel better, concerns of overmedication and addiction are valid.

While this study discussed the estimated number of Americans living with chronic pain, it did not discuss possible treatment plans that could be successful in pain management other than medication. There was no data on patients who have had success with alternative therapies such as massage, acupuncture, moist heat or chiropractic ca