Comorbidity of pain-associated disability and depressive symptoms in connection with sociodemographic variables:: results from a cross-sectional epidemiological survey in Hungary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of pain symptoms causing disabilities in every-day activities and their possible connection to depressive symptomatology. A representative sample of 12 640 adults from the Hungarian population participated in a door-to-door survey about demographic variables, pain-associated disability, and depressive symptomatology. The overall prevalence of pain-associated disability was 32.7%, significantly lower in men, showing a significant increasing trend with age. A decreasing tendency in prevalence rates was observed in connection with higher educational and occupational status. Results revealed a 30.2% prevalence of depressive symptomatology among interviewees reporting pain-associated disabilities. The co-prevalence of depressive symptoms revealed a significant increasing trend with age and lower educational level. No significant gender difference was found in the co-occurrence of depressive symptoms. This survey concludes that pain symptoms constitute a substantial public health problem in the Hungarian population in forms of emerging disabilities and depression. Epidemiological studies offer a better understanding of sociodemographic differences in health status, and serve the better allocation of professional and economic resources. (C) 2001 International Association for the Study of Pain. Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.