Prevalence of Pain and Its Relationship with Age and Sex among Patients in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: Studies investigating the prevalence of patients with pain referred for physical therapy in Saudi Arabia are scarce. This study aimed to estimate the period prevalence of pain that led to referrals for physical therapy and to evaluate the association between pain and patient age and sex. Methods: This retrospective study used data from the electronic health record system of a hospital for adult patients referred for physical therapy. Results: In total, 7426 (26.0%) patients (mean (±SD) age, 51.4 ± 15.0 years) experienced pain, the majority of whom were female (65.8%). The back (30.7%) was the most commonly reported pain region, followed by the neck (13.2%), shoulders (12.1%), and knees (11.8%). The referring physician(s) identified pain in a specific body region in 5894 of the 7426 (79.4%) patients. A moderate correlation was found between sex and pain region (Cramer’s V = 0.151, p < 0.001) and between age group and pain region (Cramer’s V = 0.10, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Pain was prevalent among adult patients referred for physical therapy and was moderately associated with sex and age. Further research examining the prevalence of pain and its risk factors in a larger, representative sample of the population is warranted.