Prevalence of Chronic Pain in the US

"Between 2019 and 2021, the prevalence of chronic pain among U.S. adults ranged from 20.5% to 21.8%, and the prevalence of high-impact chronic pain ranged from 6.9% to 7.8% (Figure). During 2021, an estimated 51.6 million U.S. adults (20.9%) experienced chronic pain, and 17.1 million (6.9%) experienced high-impact chronic pain (Table). The age-adjusted prevalence of both chronic pain and high-impact chronic pain was notably higher among certain demographic population groups including AI/AN adults, adults identifying as bisexual, and adults who were divorced or separated. The age-adjusted prevalence of high-impact chronic pain among AI/AN adults (12.8%) was six times as high as among nonHispanic Asian adults (2.1%) and nearly twice as high as among non-Hispanic White adults (6.5%). The age-adjusted prevalence of chronic pain among adults identifying as bisexual was 32.9%, compared with 19.3% among adults identifying as straight and 20.7% among those identifying as gay or lesbian. The age-adjusted prevalence of chronic pain and high-impact chronic pain among adults who were divorced or separated (29.6% and 10.1%, respectively) was nearly twice as high as among those who were married (18.2% and 5.2%, respectively). The age-adjusted prevalence of chronic pain and high-impact chronic pain among those born in the United States (21.6% and 7.0%, respectively) was nearly twice as high as among those born outside the United States (11.9% and 4.1%, respectively)."