Patient-Reported Characteristics and Care-Seeking among Canadian Adults with Chronic Pain: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Background The objective of our study was to describe the clinical characteristics and care-seeking of Canadian adults living with chronic pain.Methods We disseminated a 41-item online survey, in French and English, through social media and pain organizations from February to May 2023, to characterize respondents’ demographics, their chronic pain, and utilization of health services. Eligible individuals were ≥18 years, resided in Canada, and had persistent pain for ≥3 months.Results We acquired 770 completed surveys, predominantly from females (90%) aged 35–65 years (76%). Most (60.3%) reported living with chronic pain for ≥10 years. Average pain intensity was often moderate (58%) or severe (24%). Respondents were more likely to report frequent use of cannabis (OR 5.24; 95%CI 3.09–9.39) and never or rarely engaging in physical activity (OR 9.36; 95%CI 6.18–14.8) after developing chronic pain.Most (52%) reported no current engagement with a health care provider for their chronic pain. Past treatments included pain clinics (96%), physiotherapy (69%), opioids (56%), complementary and alternative medicine (47%), cannabis (42%), psychotherapy (35%), and interventional procedures (22%); however, current use of any of these modalities was significantly lower (ORs ranged from 0.32 to −0.06). Most respondents indicated that treatment to date had resulted in ≤40% pain relief (55%) and ≤40% functional improvement (56%); they were either dissatisfied (29%) or strongly dissatisfied (24%) with their care.Conclusion Canadian adults living with chronic pain who responded to our survey indicated long durations of moderate to severe pain that interfered with daily activities, and most were dissatisfied with their care.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Canadian Journal of Pain, 2026 · DOI ↗