• Posted March 17, 2025

Depression, Anxiety Common Among Chronic Pain Patients

The blues and the jitters are very common among people battling chronic pain, a new evidence review says.

About 40% of adults with chronic pain have symptoms of depression or anxiety, researchers report in JAMA Network Open.

Women, younger adults and people suffering from fibromyalgia are particularly vulnerable to mood disorders caused by chronic pain, researchers found.

“People who have chronic pain are more likely than those who don’t to have depression and anxiety,” lead researcher Rachel Aaron, an assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said in a news release.

“This is a significant public health problem that should be addressed with routine screening of depression and anxiety in clinical settings and the development of novel treatments that target their (mood disorder),” Aaron said.

At the same time, she added, this is also a story of resilience. 

"Most people with chronic pain do not have depression or anxiety,” Aaron said. “These results challenge the ableist narrative that chronic pain is inherently depressing and remind us that people with chronic pain can and do lead psychologically healthy, fulfilling, lives.”

About 21% of U.S. adults have a condition that causes chronic pain, researchers said in background notes.

For the study, researchers pooled data from 376 studies conducted in 50 countries involving nearly 350,000 people. The average age of patients was 51.

These studies looked for symptoms of depression and anxiety in chronic pain patients, and found that about 4 in 10 patients have these symptoms.

The overall rate of actual diagnoses based on diagnostic guidelines was lower, researchers noted: about 37% for major depressive disorder; 17% for general anxiety disorder; 8% for panic disorder; 6% for persistent depressive disorder; and 2% for social anxiety disorder.

People with fibromyalgia had the highest rates of mood disorders, with 54% experiencing depression symptoms and nearly 56% anxiety symptoms, results show.

On the other hand, arthritis had the lowest rates, with 29% of patients suffering depression symptoms and just under 18% anxiety.

The results indicate that many doctors are missing the link between chronic pain and mood disorders, Aaron said.

“Right now, we have effective psychological treatments for depression and anxiety, and effective psychological treatments for chronic pain, but these treatments are often siloed,” she said. “In fact, many studies exclude people ... with chronic pain who have depression or anxiety from clinical trials.”

“We need integrated treatments that address chronic pain and mental health together,” Aaron said.

More information

The Anxiety & Depression Association of America has more on chronic pain and mood disorders.

SOURCE: Johns Hopkins Medicine, news release, March 10, 2025