Recurrent pain symptoms in children and parents

Recurrent pain in five different areas (stomach, arms & legs, head, back and neck & shoulders) in a population of 348 school children and their parents has been investigated. The study presented here is restricted to 229 mother-father-child trios. Forty-four percent of the children reported pain in at least one area compared to 60% of the mothers and 51% of the fathers. Headache and pains in arms and legs were most common in boys. The most frequent pain sites for girls were head and back. Overall, girls complained more than boys. No significant associations between complaints in parents and their children were demonstrated, analysed by logistic regression analysis. Furthermore, there was no significant association between the reported pain in the mother and father.

Children's pain did not associate with parental pain in this study. The results do not support previous hypotheses that recurrent pain clusters in families.