One in seven has severe pain: A point-prevalence study of hospitalised patients across Africa

Abstract Acute pain in hospitalised patients is common, yet African data are scarce. We conducted a prospective point-prevalence study of hospitalised adult patients across Africa to determine acute pain prevalence and severity, and investigate associations of pain with critical illness and 7-day mortality. On a single day, investigators assessed patients’ worst pain in the preceding 24 hours using a 0–10 visual-numerical scale and recorded vital signs. Critical illness was defined as ≥1 vital sign out of range, in line with an international consensus definition. In-hospital mortality was assessed at day 7. Data are presented as median [IQR], n (%), and odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Between September and December 2023, 19438 patients from 180 hospitals in 22 African nations were included (age 40 [29; 59] years; 10874 (56%) female). Pain prevalence [95%CI] was 67.9% [67.9 – 68.5], with 2795 (14.4%) patients reporting severe pain (≥7/10). Pain was more common among patients admitted for emergency or trauma care, and in surgical and high-care wards. Pain severity did not differ meaningfully between sexes. There was no evidence of an association between pain severity and critical illness; however, increasing pain severity was associated with a higher likelihood of 7-day mortality. These findings are comparable to data from high-income countries despite substantial differences in healthcare resources, suggesting that acute pain remains a persistent and under-addressed problem globally. This study provides the first large-scale evidence of acute pain burden in African hospitals and lays a foundation for future research aimed at comprehensively characterising in-hospital pain.