Do You Know Your Chronic Pain Risk?

Know Your Risk for Chronic Pain

There are specific risk factors that predict who may be likely to need pain management in the future.

Chronic pain can stem from many different diseases, injuries, and situations. This means that there are many risk factors to consider when predicting who might experience chronic pain and need pain management solutions.

There are three major categories of risk factors for chronic pain:

--Biological risk factors that stem from your physical characteristics as well as your medical history
--Psychological risk factors linked to your mood and personality
--Lifestyle risk factors

Living With Chronic Pain: Biological Risk Factors

These are the leading physical factors that could put you at risk for chronic pain:

Female gender. Studies have shown that women are more likely to seek chronic pain management than men.

Old age. As people grow older and as their bodies age, they tend to need more ways to manage pain.

Genetics. Some chronic pain conditions like migraines have been linked to genetics. Studies also have found genetic conditions that can make you more sensitive to pain and require more chronic pain management.

Race. African-Americans and Hispanics appear to be at greater risk for chronic pain, studies have shown.

Obesity. People who carry a lot of extra weight often develop chronic pain due to their poor health. Obesity also can exacerbate medical conditions that require pain management.

Previous injury. People who have recovered from a traumatic injury run a greater risk for future chronic pain, says Michael Moskowitz, MD, assistant clinical professor for the department of anesthesiology and pain medicine at the University of California, Davis and a board member of the American Pain Foundation. "The main pain neurotransmitter is released in greater quantities in people who had previous pain problems or previous longstanding psychiatric disorder," Dr. Moskowitz says. "It's a startling increase — it can be anywhere from threefold to fivefold."

Living With Chronic Pain: Psychological Risk Factors

These factors can also increase your risk of living with chronic pain:

Childhood trauma. People who experienced parental neglect or physical or sexual abuse as children are more likely to have chronic pain. "These childhood factors play a large role in later developing a chronic pain problem," Moskowitz says.

Mood disorders. People with depression or anxiety disorders have a greater risk of chronic pain. Many brain areas and neurotransmitters that handle pain signals also manage mood.

http://www.everydayhealth.com/pain-management/know-your-risk-for-chronic-pain.aspx

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