PAIN IN SPAIN

Over a quarter of Spain suffers from chronic pain

By Alex Trelinski

chronic pain are defined as having it for more than four days a week and persisting for longer than three months.

Chronic pain presents a financial cost with 28.6% of patients needing to take time off work over the last year from it.

Alarmingly, 22% of chronic pain sufferers said they got depression as a result of their condition and an additional 27.6% people said they were prone to anxiety.

People aged between 55 and 77 had the highest incidents of pain with women (59%) more prevalent than men.

“The study has given us a better awareness of what is going on and what pain represents at a social, economic, and health level,” said Cadiz University’s Inmaculuda Failde. She added there needed to be more pain units added to the existing 417 at public hospitals.

“There also has to be more cooperation between all health departments as relieving chronic pain should be a national priority,” she concluded.