PLoS ONE (Jan 2023)

Socioeconomic and sex inequalities in chronic pain: A population-based cross-sectional study.

  • Ana Maria Braga de Oliveira,
  • Doralice Severo da Cruz Teixeira,
  • Fabrício Dos Santos Menezes,
  • Amélia Pasqual Marques,
  • Yeda Aparecida de Oliveira Duarte,
  • Raquel Aparecida Casarotto

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285975
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 18, no. 5
p. e0285975

Abstract

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ObjectiveWe investigated the impact of socioeconomic inequalities on chronic pain of older adults according to sex.Materials and methodsThis population-based cross-sectional study used survey data from the 2015 cohort of the SABE Study (Saúde, Bem-estar e Envelhecimento), Brazil. Socioeconomic status was examined at individual level (educational attainment, financial independence, and race/skin color) and contextual level (Human Development Index). We analyzed the association between variables using the chi-square test and the Rao & Scott correction. Logistic regression models were adjusted for risk factors.ResultsThe study comprised 1,207 older adults representing 1,365,514 residents 60≥ years of age in the city of São Paulo. Chronic pain was more frequent in females (27.2%) than in males (14.5%) (pDiscussionThe potential for inequality was greater for females than for males reflecting structural factors inherent in a highly unequal society. Conclusions: Equity-oriented health policies are critical to preventing pain in human aging.