Chronic pain often accompanies mental disorders, but treatment evidence remains limited
A broad research review found frequent chronic pain across mental disorders, alongside substantial differences in pain definitions and limited evidence about treatments.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Chronic pain was commonly reported among people with mental disorders, although prevalence varied substantially across conditions. Depression and chronic pain showed associations in both directions, which does not establish that either causes the other. The treatment evidence was sparse, and the estimate for cognitive behavioral therapy remained compatible with no pain benefit.
Different study designs and inconsistent definitions of chronic pain complicate comparisons. Risk-factor evidence was limited outside depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and the abstract does not identify the treatment comparators or follow-up periods.
What the review examined
The authors brought together research on how often chronic pain occurs, which factors accompany it, and how it has been treated across mental disorders. The scope extended beyond prevalence to risk factors and treatment outcomes.
Why the uncertainty matters
The abstract reports some favorable pain-treatment results, but these come from a sparse and methodologically varied evidence base. This abstract-based account cannot determine which approach works best for a particular mental disorder or patient.
The original publication
Chronic pain in mental disorders: An umbrella review of the prevalence, risk factors, and treatments across 957,168 people with mental disorders and 16,606,910 controls.
Stubbs B, Ma R, Solmi M et al.
Eur Psychiatry · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 40790851
- Record checked
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