Stressful childhood experiences are a risk factor for chronic pain – diepresse.com

Children who were exposed to difficult -stressing experiences, especially at the age of ten and twelve, later suffer from chronic pain much more often in adulthood than other people. Most of the Austrian scientists’ team has now occupied this connection. The risk of chronic pain states increases triple. « Chronic pain (CP) in adult life is a widespread and potentially associated experience: Around twelve to 14 percent of people in Europe and 19 percent of the US population report chronic pain, seven to 14 percent therefore also of moderately severe disabilities. Chronic pain is one of the world’s leading causes of » life with disabilities « and also has a strong socio-economic effect. In Europe, the average annual costs due to chronic pain between three and ten percent of gross domestic product, ”wrote David Riedl (Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Rehabilitation Research/Vienna and University Clinic for Psychiatry/Innsbruck) in the specialist magazine“ Diagnostics ”(DOITICS” (DOITICS/DIAGNOSTICS/DIAGNASTICS15070839).

According to the scientists, it has been proven for a long time that depression, anxiety and trauma are often related to chronic pain. Conversely, depression and anxiety disorders are often accompanying diseases of chronic pain. « In addition, traumatic experiences, in particular stressful childhood experiences (ACES), can act as long -term risk factors that increase the susceptibility to chronic pain in adulthood, » wrote the experts. So far, the period in which children or adolescents are most vulnerable has been unclear.

Big study with almost 2,600 subjects

The study was carried out with inpatient patients and sick people, who had visited the outpatient clinics of seven departments of the University Clinic Innsbruck (HNO, accident and neurosurgery, neurology, gynecology, internal medicine and radiology). A total of 2,577 subjects took part in the investigation. During the waiting times, they filled out detailed questionnaires. Almost a third of the subjects (middle age around 47 years) reported chronic pain for more than six months. The questions related to psychological and physical abuse or neglect, traumatic experiences suffered, stress experiences and finally pain symptoms.

Almost 30 percent of all study participants finally reported on one to three negative childhood experiences that are difficult to stress, about six percent of negative childhood experiences suffered in the frequency. Most often called emotional abuse (around 18 percent), followed by abuse by parents etc. in third place (twelve percent) followed physical or psychological neglect.

Apparently particularly vulnerable in pre -puberty

The risk of the later occurrence of chronic pain conditions was apparently literally « dose -dependent ». « Compared to patients without stressful childhood experiences, the frequency of chronic pain states increased by a factor of 1.5 in one to three such experiences, » said the experts. With four and more stressful experiences, the risk of chronic pain was tripling.

With a AI system including machine learning, the phase of those affected could finally be identified in which they were most vulnerable for later negative consequences of stressful childhood experiences. « This is the first study that shows a time -dependency of the connection between stressful childhood experiences and chronic pain conditions (in adulthood; note), » says the summary of the examination. The key point: abuse, poor treatment in mental or physical terms, neglect and trauma « between the ages of ten and twelve » are the most important forecast factors for later chronic pain.

The scientists would find the early discover of such situations to which children can be at the mercy, and psychosocial support in the given case would be one of the core tasks for members of the health professions. This could prevent consequences of stressful childhood experiences after many years. (APA)