African Americans/education ; African Americans/ethnology ; African Americans/statistics & numerical data ; Attitude to Health/ethnology* ; Chi-Square Distribution ; Complementary Therapies/utilization ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; European Continental Ancestry Group/education ; European Continental Ancestry Group/ethnology ; European Continental Ancestry Group/statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Health Care Surveys ; Health Status Disparities* ; Health Surveys ; Healthcare Disparities/utilization* ; Hispanic Americans/education ; Hispanic Americans/ethnology ; Hispanic Americans/statistics & numerical data ; Humans ; Linear Models ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Minority Groups/education ; Minority Groups/psychology* ; Minority Groups/statistics & numerical data ; Nonprescription Drugs/therapeutic use ; Pain/diagnosis ; Pain/ethnology* ; Pain Management ; Prevalence ; Public Health Nursing ; Self Care/methods ; Self Care/psychology ; Severity of Illness Index ; Socioeconomic Factors ; United States/epidemiology
Keywords
ethnicity ; pain ; population survey ; race ; the United States
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To investigate differences in reported pain and pain treatment utilization (use of over-the-counter and prescription pain medications, seeing a pain specialist, and use of complementary and alternative medicine) among minorities and nonminorities in the general population.
DESIGN: Secondary analysis of a national probability survey conducted by the CBS News/New York Times in January 2003.
SAMPLE: Adult population in the United States, 18 years or older, having a telephone line at home.
MEASUREMENTS: The survey asked respondents a series of questions about demographics, pain characteristics, and utilization of pain treatment; logistic regression was used to identify variables predicting reported utilization of pain treatment.
RESULTS: Of the 902 respondents completing the survey, 676 (75%) reported experiencing "any type of pain." Of these, 17% reported being diagnosed with chronic pain. Minorities reported a higher average daily pain than Whites (4.75 vs. 3.72; p<.001). However, race/ethnicity did not explain utilization of pain treatment; income, education, age, gender, and pain levels explained more variability in different pain treatment utilization variables than race/ethnicity.
CONCLUSIONS: Although minorities report higher pain levels than Whites, race/ethnicity does not explain utilization of treatment for pain. Future studies should consider more nuanced examination of interactions among race/ethnicity, pain, and socioeconomic variables.