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The following is a summary of “Pain intensity and comorbid depressive symptoms in the general population: An analysis of the German Health Update Study (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS),” published in the October 2024 issue of Pain by Ahrend et al. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study examining the German population with pain intensity and depressive symptoms.   

They investigated data from the German Health Update Study (GEDA 2019/2020-EHIS) to study the relationship between pain intensity and depressive symptoms. Pain intensity was categorized as no pain, mild, moderate, and severe, while depressive symptoms were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8), the prevalence of depressive symptoms was analyzed with a 95% CI and a multivariable logistic regression analyzed associated factors with depressive symptoms using odds ratios (OR).  

The results showed that out of 22,708 participants (51.0% women, 35.1% aged 45–64 years), 41.2% reported no pain, 32.1% mild pain, 15.3% moderate pain, and 11.5% severe pain. Overall, depressive symptoms were present in 8.3% of participants (9.1% in women and 7.5% in men). Depressive symptoms were reported by 2.5% of participants with no pain, 6.5% with mild pain, 14.4% with moderate pain, and 27.1% with severe pain. The multivariable analysis indicated that higher pain intensity was linked with an increased risk of depressive symptoms (mild pain OR 1.8 95% CI 1.3–2.4; moderate pain OR 2.8, 95% CI 2.0–4.0; severe pain OR 4.0, 95% CI 2.8–5.6). Additionally, depressive symptoms were associated with a Body Mass Index (BMI) under 18.5 kg/m^-2(OR 2.4; 95% CI 1.4–4.1) but not with sex (OR 1.1; 95% CI 0.9–1.3).  

Investigators concluded that higher pain intensity increased the risk of depressive symptoms and recommended regular assessment of pain alongside further evaluation of depressive symptoms in individuals experiencing moderate or severe pain. 

Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ejp.4745