Chronic pain is poorly managed

A fifth of adults in Europe have moderate to severe chronic pain, and in many cases their symptoms are inadequately managed, says a recent study.

Only one in 50 cases are managed by a pain specialist, and a third of patients are not currently being treated, says the study in the European Journal of Pain, published online on 10 August.

"We have documented that chronic pain is a major health care problem in Europe," wrote the authors, from the University of Oslo, Rikshospitalet University Hospital, Oslo, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, and Mundipharma International, Cambridge. "This needs to be taken more seriously by health care providers and those responsible for health care policies and allocations of resources."

British Medical Journal 2005;331:476 (3 September)

Steve - Timely? The numbers are higher in the United States. It just so happens that we just published The Pain Relief Diet at nutritionalconcepts.com.