NEUROPATHY AND CHRONIC PAIN

The prevalence of pain in medical consultations is of relevant importance and significantly affects the quality of life of patients.

There are many types of pain.

We are going to focus on those that represent the highest levels of prevalence, and also many of them present with inflammation:

  •   NEURPATHIC PAIN.
  • CHRONIC PAIN WITH AND WITHOUT INFLAMMATION.

Neuropathic pain alone or associated with inflammatory processes represents at least 25% of consultations that occur in primary care.

85% of people suffering from neuropathic pain present a significant deterioration in their quality of life, in addition to other associated pathologies such as sleep disorders, anxiety, depression, or lack of energy.

Consultation for pain accounts for 50% of visits to primary care.

 The prevalence of chronic pain could reach 11% of the population, of which 47% suffer pain daily.

8% of patients who go to the neurologist suffer from neuropathic pain and it is already the 8th diagnosis in order of frequency.

Neuropathic pain is a neurological condition that appears as a consequence of alterations in the peripheral or central nervous system, caused by a lesion in the nervous system or by a malfunction of it. Although the symptoms of neuropathic pain are highly variable, it is common to experience a lack of sensitivity along with painful symptoms similar to a sensation of electric current or burning or painful hypersensitivity that causes patients to feel pain when touched or touched by any object. This makes 85% of patients present a significant deterioration in their quality of life, in addition to other associated pathologies such as sleep disorders (65%), anxiety (63%), depression (56%), or lack of energy (55%), and which motivates a high demand for medical consultations.

“Neuropathic pain is one of the most complex types of pain, because it encompasses different etiologies, pathophysiological mechanisms, and clinical manifestations. This means that, on many occasions, patients do not receive an adequate diagnosis or therapeutic treatment or are waiting for the drug and the adequate dose to be identified. Currently, the neuropathic pain picture lasts more than 12 months in more than 65% of patients”.

Diabetic neuropathy:

It is considered that 50 to 75% of diabetics will suffer from neuropathy between 5 to 10 years after the onset of the disease, affecting both patients with type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (DM1) and type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM2).

Chronic pain:

 20% of the adult population suffers from chronic pain.

Among the patients who report chronic pain are patients with Fibromyalgia.