Chronic Pain in Children and Adolescents Becoming More Common

 

Schematic Examples of CNS Structural Changes in chronic pain.jpg http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schematic_Examples_of_CNS_Structural_Changes_in_chronic_pain.jpg Borsook D, Moulton EA, Schmidt KF, Becerra LR.

 

 

From the 9 December 2011 Medical News Today article

Children who suffer from persistent or recurring chronic pain may miss school, withdraw from social activities, and are at risk of developing internalizing symptoms such as anxiety, in response to their pain. In the first comprehensive review of chronic pain in children and adolescents in 20 years, a group of researchers found that more children now are suffering from chronic pain and that girls suffer more frequently from chronic pain than boys.

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Their findings indicate that most types of pain are more prevalent in girls than in boys, but the factors that influence this gender difference are not entirely clear. Pain prevalence rates tend to increase with age. Psychosocial variables impacting pain prevalence included anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and low socioeconomic status. Headache was found to be the most common studied pain type in youth, with an estimated prevalence rate of 23%. Other types of pain, ie, abdominal pain, back pain, musculoskeletal pain, and pain combinations, were less frequently studied than headache, and prevalence rates were variable because of differences in reporting. However, the overall results indicated that these pain types are highly prevalent in children and adolescents, with median prevalence rates ranging from 11% to 38%. “These rates are of great concern, but what is even more concerning is that research suggests that the prevalence rates of childhood pain have increased over the last several decades,” stated Dr. King.

Researchers also found that many studies did not meet quality criteria and there was great variability in prevalence rates across studies due to time periods over which pain was reported……

Related articles

• Chronic pain in children and adolescents becoming more common (scienceblog.com)
• Chronic pain in children and adolescents becoming more common (eurekalert.org)
• Chronic pain in children and adolescents becoming more common (medicalxpress.com)
• When Children Live With Chronic Pain (everydayhealth.com)
• Know Your Risk for Chronic Pain (everydayhealth.com)
• Physical Therapy for Pain Management (everydayhealth.com)
• Opioids May Be Overused for Chronic Stomach Pain (cherished79.wordpress.com)
• Remote-controlled medical device helps alleviate chronic pain ()

Child Trends – Research and Resources

Child Trends

From a Scout Report summary by KMG

 

Child Trends is a non-profit, non-partisan research center, and is the “nation’s only independent research and policy center focused exclusively on improving outcomes for children.”

Research  topics include “Child Poverty,” “Fatherhood & Parenting,” “Youth Development,” and “Health.” In each section, the research focus on that topic is explained in a brief introduction, followed by resources that include research briefs, executive summaries and full reports, fact sheets, and a publications archive of materials over three years old.

A feature that visitors shouldn’t miss is “What Works/LINKS,” which can be accessed via the left side menu. The data in this section is about “programs that work -or don’t- to enhance children’s development”. There are effectiveness charts, “Lifecourse Interventions that Work,” and a continually updated database on programs that work (or don’t).

Visitors who are “Program Providers” in policy, education, or the media will find the “Information for…” heading on the left side of the homepage useful for fulfilling their specific needs.