GP visits for chronic pain shoot up over decade

Almost 1 in 5 of Australians who are 45 years and older report being in chronic pain, says an AIHW report

GPs are increasingly seeing patients with chronic pain, with related visits soaring by more than two thirds in a decade, a report shows.

In 2016, 1.6 million Australians aged 45 and over, or almost one in five, reported having chronic pain, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.