At least 12 million French people suffer from chronic pain.
- The definition of pain has been updated by the IASP as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage”.
- This formulation reveals the difficulty of defining pain, which is above all a personal experience, influenced quite largely by biological factors (such as sex or age) and by psychological and social factors.
According to figures compiled by the French Society for the Study and Treatment of Pain (SFETD), pain is part of the daily life of many French people. 32% thus express recurrent pain for more than 3 months and 20% declare chronic pain of moderate to severe intensity. Pain is thus the first reason for consultation in emergency departments and with the general practitioner.
An impaired quality of life
This suffering has significant consequences: 1 chronic pain patient out of 2 has an impaired quality of life. On the professional level, for example, there are 5 times more work stoppages in chronic pain patients, and 45% of chronic pain patients are affected by work stoppages whose cumulative average duration exceeds 4 months per year. More than 2/3 of patients (70%) suffering from chronic pain also present psychosocial repercussions (sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, cognitive disorders).
However, pain remains poorly managed in France. 2 out of 3 patients are not relieved by their treatment, and less than one out of two patients admitted to the emergency department receives analgesic treatment at the start of their care pathway. “Less than 3% of chronic pain patients also benefit from care in a specialized pain center or structure, which, as multi-professional referral centers, concern the most complex patients in relay with the city “, adds the SFETD. Finally, nearly 20% of operated patients have painful sequelae after surgery.
Focus on fibromyalgia and endometriosis
The SFETD also draws attention to two diseases that generate pain on a daily basis: fibromyalgia and endometriosis. “1.6% of the adult population has fibromyalgia”, say the experts. “Fibromyalgia mainly affects women: 2/3 of women for 1/3 of men according to the collective expertise, 8 to 9 cases out of 10 according to Health Insurance”, they add.
Latest major data: 25 to 70% of women and 19 to 47% of adolescents suffer from chronic pelvic pain linked to endometriosis. 20% of women with endometriosis see their mobility affected, 50 to 60% have a decrease in their sporting activity, appetite or sleep disorders and 30% see their usual activities disturbed. “70% have debilitating pain and painful intercourse”concludes the SFETD.
.
