Half of these see more than one doctor for prescriptions and take over-the-counter drugs at the same time as their prescription drugs. At least 100,000 Americans are hospitalised for the treatment of addiction and other drug-related complications. Many other patients probably have the same problems but are un-reported. Many others die of the complications of taking pain medication.

The University of Washington Pain Clinic found that many of the patients treated there had already spent over $40,000 on their health care. Such an astronomical cost causes a tremendous drain on the national treasury. To put the figures on aspirin into perspective, just consider that Americans swallow some 20,000 tons of aspirin a year, or 225 tablets for every man, woman and child!

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Australia’s statistics on chronic and acute pain are staggering. As far as can be estimated, about 40 per cent of Australians are afflicted, at a cost of no less than $7200 million annually, according to Sydney health consultant, Mr Paul Gross. That constitutes 40 per cent of Australia’s gross health care bill. Moreover, he predicts that if the problem is not tackled, the total health bill will rise to $30,000 million by 1991 compared with the present $17,000 million.

Half the present figure of $7200 million goes to the indirect costs such as working time lost and sick-leave payments. His estimates include the direct costs of treatment and care but do not take into account legal costs in settling claims for illnesses.

Mannheimer and Lampe in their 1984 textbook of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (see recommended reading) stated that on any given day chronic pain can disable one million American workers. Thirty-five to 50 million people have chronic pain in some form or another. Of these 25 million are severely disabled. In America there are 20 to 40 million doctors surgery visits per year for back pain alone. Headaches of one kind or another afflict 25 million Americans and some 12 million physician hours are taken up each year in the treatment of migraine headaches.

Dr John Bonica writing in a 1980 book on pain speculated that chronic pain affected nearly 35% of Americans. At that time he stated that over 50 million were partially or completely disabled by pain for periods ranging from a few days per year to permanently. He stated that over 18 million had low back pain and another 5 million had thoracic or neck pain. Of those over 10 million were said to be partially or completely disabled. Bonica indicated that the implications were that a staggering 280 million work days were lost at a cost of $17.6 billion, then, in lost wages, health insurance, compensation, etc.

The 1980 paper by Bonica suggested that the total cost of pain in the USA was 10% of the US National Budget.

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