Burden of disease of chronic pain in Colombia

ABSTRACT

Objectives

To assess the burden of disease of chronic pain in Colombia.

Methods

We estimated disability adjusted life years (DALYs) attributable to chronic pain using Global Burden of Disease (GBD) method. We identified diagnostic codes related to chronic pain considering lumbar pain, osteoarthritis, post-herpetic neuralgia, diabetic neuropathy, cancer-related pain, and others. We estimated the prevalent cases by sex and age-group using local administrative databases and literature. We assumed that pain would not cause premature death, so we only estimated years lived with disability using disability weights obtained from the GBD. We used a prevalence-based approach, without discounting or age-group adjustment. We calculated total DALYs and DALYs/100,000 inhabitants.

Results

We estimated a total of 5,545,019 patients with chronic pain. We calculated 491,626 DALYs or 976 DALYs/100,000 inhabitants attributable to chronic pain. Low back pain, osteoarthritis, and cancer-related pain were the most important groups.

Conclusions

This study estimates that chronic pain contributes a significant quantity of DALYs, especially related to low back pain, osteoarthritis, and cancer-related pain. Chronic pain should be considered in the public health agenda.

KEYWORDS:

• Burden of disease
• chronic pain
• disability-adjusted life years (DALYs)
• pain
• disability
• adjusted life years
• disease
• Colombia

Declaration of interest

P Lasalvia, Y Gil-Rojas and D Rosselli are employed by NeuroEconomix, which received funding for this project. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Author contributions

P Lasalvia, Y Gil-Rojas and D Rosselli both contributed to the design of the work; the acquisition, analysis, and interpretation of data for the work; drafting the work; final approval of the version to be published; agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/14737167.2022.2125872

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by Grünenthal Pharma, S.A. Colombia.