Pain Control Disparities in Acute Pancreatitis

Background and objective Patient treatments and outcomes have historically differed based on age, sex, race/ethnicity, and social factors, and there is a growing awareness that such disparities still exist. While prior studies have found that patients belonging to minority groups have their pain undertreated, few studies have evaluated pain control based on age, sex, body mass index (BMI), or presence of a substance use disorder (SUD). The studies that do exist have inconsistent results. This study aimed to evaluate pain control in patients admitted to a Denver academic safety net hospital for acute pancreatitis. Pancreatitis is an inherently painful condition involving pancreatic inflammation and for which adequate pain control is a cornerstone of treatment; this makes it an ideal disease state for an exploratory analysis into the experience of pain within different patient groups. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study of patients treated at the Denver Health Medical Center from January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2019, for acute pancreatitis; 659 patients met the inclusion criteria and were included in the study. Pain control during the first 24 hours of hospital admission was analyzed by comparing controlled vs. uncontrolled reports of pain and mean pain scores. Patients were stratified by age, sex, self-reported race/ethnicity, BMI, and presence of SUD at the time of admission. Achievement of "controlled pain," as defined by a pain score below the patient’s stated functional pain goal, was then analyzed. Chi-squared analysis was employed to look into differences within and between groups. Additionally, a t-test was used to compare mean pain scores between groups with controlled and uncontrolled pain. Results A statistically significant difference in pain control was found when stratified by age or the presence of SUD (p<0.001). Within these groups, 39% of those aged 18-40 years achieved pain control, compared with 49% of those aged 41-64 years and 66% of those aged 65 years and older. Among those with active SUD, only 41% were able to achieve pain control compared with 58% of those without SUD. Among those who achieved pain control, the average mean pain score was 5, which decreased to 4 within 24 hours. Among those who did not achieve pain control, the average mean pain score was 7, which remained at 7 at 24 hours (p<0.001). Conclusions We did not find significant differences in the ability to achieve tolerable pain control based on sex or BMI. We were unable to appropriately analyze differences based on race/ethnicity due to an inability to differentiate between White Hispanic and White non-Hispanic populations within Epic. However, we did find significantly poorer pain control in younger patients and those with an active SUD.