This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
White, teenage girls hospitalized more often for chronic pain
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Female teenagers are more likely to be admitted to the hospital with chronic pain, especially related to gastrointestinal or psychiatric conditions, according to recent study findings published in Pediatrics.
“Admissions for chronic pain are rising and account for substantial resource utilizations,” researchers wrote. “Future studies should further characterize this population with the overall objective of improving and optimizing cost-effective care.”
The study included 3,752 children admitted with chronic pain from 2004 to 2010. Demographic characteristics, length of stay, readmission rates, diagnoses and procedures were all evaluated.
Researchers found that admissions increased 831% during the study time period. The mean age of patients was 13.5 years, 79% were white, and girls outnumbered boys by 2.41:1.
Abdominal pain was the most common admission and principal discharge diagnosis. Researchers also found that comorbid diagnoses were common, with a mean of 10 per patient. Sixty-five percent of patients had a gastrointestinal comorbid diagnosis and 44% had a psychiatric diagnosis. The mean length of stay was 7.32 days, and 12.5% were readmitted at least once within 1 year. There was a mean of 3.18 procedures per patient.
“Children admitted to the inpatient setting with chronic pain are most commonly white adolescent females who have a wide variety of comorbid conditions, many of which are gastrointestinal, psychiatric, and musculoskeletal in nature,” researchers wrote. “Abdominal pain and headaches occur in a substantial portion of these patients.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts