Every seventh hospital patient in Africa has severe pain — TimesLIVE
In 180 hospitals across 22 African countries, 67.9% of adult patients reported pain, while 14.4% rated it as severe — seven points or higher on a 10-point scale. These findings were obtained by researchers at the University of Cape Town (UCT), who analyzed data from 19,438 patients. The study was reported by TimesLIVE.
Distribution of pain levels
The study was conducted from September to December 2023, and patients were followed for seven days to determine whether they survived or died in hospital. About one-third of participants had no pain, 28% reported mild pain, 25.4% moderate pain, and 14.4% severe pain. The median pain score among all participants was three out of 10.
Pain was recorded most often among patients hospitalized after injuries: 84.1% of these patients experienced it, while 20.3% reported severe pain. Among patients with non-communicable diseases, the figures were 62.6% and 12.5%, respectively.
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Differences between wards
In surgical wards, 16.2% of patients reported severe pain, compared with 11.1% in medical wards. In enhanced care units, the figure reached 19.3%, compared with 14% in general wards. The researchers found no significant overall difference in pain severity between men and women, and they also found no association between pain level and classification of a patient as critically ill.
After accounting for other factors, higher pain intensity was associated with higher odds of dying in hospital within seven days. The authors stressed that the observational nature of the study does not allow the conclusion that severe pain causes death: it may be a sign of more serious illness or injury. Data on pain medications and other treatments were not collected in the study.
The findings were published in the journal PAIN. The researchers plan to determine how pain is assessed and treated in African hospitals and what barriers prevent patients from receiving effective pain relief.
