The Burden of Pediatric Pain: Triggers, Impact on Daily Life and Health Care Utilization-A Cohort Study

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Health
• Epidemiology
• Child Psychology

Background:

• Pain significantly affects children's quality of life and healthcare utilization.
• Understanding pediatric pain experiences is crucial for effective management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the experience of pain in children.
• To analyze healthcare use and medical diagnoses related to pediatric pain.
• To investigate factors influencing pain impact and healthcare seeking.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Generation XXI cohort at 10 years of age.
• Collected reports on pain experience, daily activity impact, healthcare use, and medical diagnoses from children and parents.
• Analyzed associations between pain characteristics (frequency, intensity, location, duration) and outcomes.

Main Results:

• 26.7% of children reporting pain experienced an impact on daily activities.
• Pain impact was associated with increased pain frequency, intensity, multisite pain, longer duration, and medication use.
• 17.0% of children with pain sought healthcare, and 12.5% received a medical diagnosis (musculoskeletal, gastroenterological, psychological most common).
• Healthcare use correlated with higher pain frequency, duration, and medication use.
• Despite higher pain prevalence in girls, the impact was similar across sexes.

Conclusions:

• Pediatric pain can significantly affect daily life, with factors like pain frequency and intensity exacerbating the impact.
• While most pediatric pain is managed without formal healthcare, a notable percentage seeks medical attention and receives diagnoses.
• Healthcare utilization for pain is linked to pain severity and chronicity, with musculoskeletal, gastroenterological, and psychological conditions being frequent diagnoses.