Prevalence of pain and analgesic use in people with chronic kidney disease

Background Pain is a common but complex problem to manage for people with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Poorly managed pain contributes to poor quality of life and increases carer stress. We wished to investigate the prevalence and severity of pain and describe analgesic use in people with CKD. Method A cross-sectional analysis of patients attending two nephrology outpatient clinics completed a 16-item self-reported questionnaire. Nine questions related to demographic and clinical details; four questions explored the presence and severity of pain and medication taking behaviour; three questions evaluated health literacy skills. Results The survey was completed by 143 participants (a response rate of 17%). Most participants (n=98; 84%) reported pain, with the severity described as moderate (32%) or severe (22%). Despite the high self-reported prevalence of pain, almost half (48%) took no regular analgesia. Paracetamol-based products were most commonly used (53%), followed by opioids (22 %) and paracetamol/codeine combinations (13%). Of those with moderate or severe pain, 11.9% took no regular pain relief. Health literacy was not associated with the presence of pain, pain severity, use of pain relief, or type of pain medications used. Conclusion This study provides useful information beyond documenting the prevalence of pain in people with CKD. The study highlights that a proportion of people with CKD and moderate to severe pain are not managing their pain effectively. This finding was unexpected, and future research exploring this discrepancy may inform interventions to improve quality of life.