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medpundit |
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Sunday, September 07, 2003New poll results show that more than half of all Americans (57 percent) have suffered chronic or recurrent pain in the past year. Surprisingly, younger people (18-34) were only slightly less likely than older Americans to be in pain. The impact of pain is experienced by three out of every four surveyed (76 percent), who are either suffering from pain themselves or have a close family member or friend who suffers. The survey doesn't mention how the "chronic pain" or "recurrent pain" was defined, but it would be surprising if that many people actually had unremitting daily pain for months at a time, which is what "chronic pain" really is. The article says that the survey was sponsored by an unbiased advocacy group: Research!America, a not-for-profit, public education and advocacy alliance, sponsored the nationwide survey timed to be released during September, which is National Pain Awareness Month. Why would they time a survey to coincide with National Pain Awareness Month unless it was as a promotional gimmick? Which, in turn, calls into question the reliability of the survey. In fact, Research!America is a lobbying group for the healthcare research industry. Now, there's nothing wrong with pooling resources to advocate for more research dollars, but there is something wrong with using hyperbole and vague surveys to get those dollars. The most likely force behind the survey is the chronic pain industry : This survey should serve as a wake-up call to all Americans -- including our elected leaders -- that chronic pain is a problem of epidemic proportions in our country," said Mary Woolley, president of Research!America. James Campbell, MD, chair of the American Pain Foundation, agrees that the survey reveals a widespread misunderstanding of both the prevalence and the debilitating effects of pain in our society. "These poll results show that pain is a pandemic health problem," Campbell said. "In a society where we can do heart transplants and treat AIDS, severe pain should no longer be acceptable. Perhaps most importantly, the poll demonstrates that pain research needs more emphasis and funding so that we can improve the quality of life for countless Americans." Campbell is also professor of neurosurgery and director of the Blauststein Pain Treatment Center at Johns Hopkins University Medical Center. Which means, of course, that he makes his living from pain research and management. Take it all with a grain of salt - and a grain of aspirin. posted by Sydney on 9/07/2003 10:10:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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