Tamara Thomas

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A study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that women receive inadequate pain management, including less access to painkillers, compared to men with similar symptoms.
Research indicates that there is a tendency to perceive pain experienced by women as less severe compared to pain experienced by men. For this study, Dr. Mika Guzikevits from the Hebrew University Business School, Israel, surveyed to see if there are tangible differences in pain management decisions based on a patient&#8217;s sex.
The researchers used the discharge notes of over 21000 patients with pain complaints from emergency department datasets. They also evaluated the stance on pain medications of over 100 practicing nurses and physicians at the University of Missouri Health Care Hospital.
Dr. Guzikevits and colleagues observed a consistent sex disparity in painkiller prescriptions. Their findings reveal that female patients were less likely to be prescribed pain relief medication than men despite having similar complaints (38% vs. 47%).
To test the generalizability of their study, Dr. Guzikevits and colleagues evaluated sex differences in painkiller prescriptions for patients receiving care at the University of Missouri Health Care Hospital. According to their findings, women were also less likely to receive painkiller medications than men (26% vs. 31%), even though they had similar pain scores.
&#8220;This under-treatment of female patients pain could have serious implications for women&#8217;s health outcomes, potentially leading to longer recovery times, complications or chronic pain conditions,&#8221; Dr. Shoham Choshen-Hillel, one of the study authors, said in a university news release.
The researchers also added that the prescription disparity in pain medication was similar between male and female physicians. 
The study revealed that nurses were more likely to rate pain as less intense if the patient was female. The researchers stated that gender stereotypes are driving this bias. 
Furthermore, nurses were 10% less likely to record pain scores for female than male patients, which the researchers believe could result in inadequate treatment.
The researchers concluded, “The findings join mounting evidence of discrimination against females in the medical system and other areas. Undertreatment of females&#8217; pain bears immediate implications for the healthcare system and broad implications for society&#8217;s attitude toward female pain.”
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Source: <a href="https://www.healthday.com/health-news/pain-ma">HealthDay</a>
Journal: <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2401331121#sec-2">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>

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A study found that women receive inadequate pain management, including less access to painkillers, compared to men with similar symptoms.

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