How Australians are experiencing and managing chronic pain
In 2016, 1.6 million Australians were recorded as living with chronic pain. In 2019, that number had risen to 3.24 million Australians living with various pain conditions, and is predicted to rise further to 5.23 million by 2050.
Chronic pain is having a significant impact on the lives of more Australians than ever before, costing the Australian economy an estimated $144.10 billion.
Understanding Chronic Pain In Australia
In one of the first in-depth reports of its kind, The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare compiled national data on the 1 in 5 Australians over 45 who experience chronic pain, exploring the effect of chronic pain on daily life and various treatments, creating a clear snapshot of how everyday Australians are managing chronic pain conditions.
This report was followed up by Pain Australia’s The Cost Of Pain In Australia in 2019, and Chronic Pain Australia’s National Pain Report in 2025.
We have compiled some of the most revealing data points to provide a clear overview of how Australia experiences, treats, and manages chronic pain.
The Chronic Pain In Australia Report
The Chronic Pain In Australia report highlighted the commonality of long-term, enduring pain conditions experienced across the population.
Its key findings form a revealing snapshot of chronic pain in Australia:
- People with chronic pain are 5 times as likely to be limited ‘a lot’ in daily activities than those without pain.
- Women and older people are more likely to have chronic pain.
- GPs are seeing an increase in patients seeking support for chronic pain, with a 67% increase in patient encounters over ten years.
- People experiencing chronic pain are three times as likely to be prescribed opioids, other analgesics, and migraine medication, than other patients.
- Almost 1 in 5 Australians aged 45 and over had chronic pain in 2016.
- People with chronic pain are more likely to stay longer in hospital, and have other long-term conditions.
When Pain Becomes Chronic
Chronic pain is a condition of the nervous system, but beyond this, diagnosing chronic pain can be challenging. The Australian medical community does not have a national, aligned definition of chronic pain, due to the significant amount of conditions that can overlap with chronic pain symptoms. The nature of pain itself is a highly subjective experience, predicated on an individual’s perception of ‘what is painful’ and ‘what is normal’ which varies widely from person to person. A good day for a person who has had severe arthritis for many years will likely vary greatly to a healthy young person experiencing joint pain for the first time. This makes diagnosing chronic pain complex.
With a lack of rigid guidelines, chronic pain is considered any enduring pain that lingers after what is generally considered a normal healing time for injury or illness, which is around 3 to 6 months. This means that while chronic pain can be mild, moderate or severe in its discomfort, it is defined by longevity, rather than intensity.
Longer Time To Diagnose
This difficulty to diagnose chronic pain has been highlighted in Chronic Pain Australia’s 2025 National Pain report, where 54% of participants indicated that they had waited more than two years for a diagnosis, 44% had waited more than three.
These outcomes highlight a need to make chronic pain a national health priority, to drive earlier diagnosis, and helping Australians suffering with chronic pain to access what is considered chronic pain management best practice – multidisciplinary and specialist care.
Different Kinds Of Pain
While there are numerous kinds of chronic pain conditions, chronic pain itself can be defined across three categories:
- Nociceptive
- Neuropathic
- Nociplastic.
Nociceptive
Nociceptive pain is pain that stems from damage to non-neural tissues, such as your skin, muscles, joints or bones, as detected by nociceptors. Nociceptors are a pain receptor, and their primary function is to feel pain caused by the body being ‘hurt’ by physical damage. This includes thermal damage (like frostbite and burns), and chemical damage (caused by hazardous chemicals).
Nociceptive pain is the most common type of physical pain, and includes fractures, skin damage, burns, bruises, and pain caused by sprains and arthritis. Nociceptive pain tends to feel like aching, burning or throbbing.
Neuropathic
Neuropathic pain occurs when your nervous system malfunctions, either as a result of physical trauma or disease of the nerve tissues. Damaged nerve fibres send incorrect signals to different pain centres in your body, often experienced as a generalised pain with an exact ‘pain centre’, like the discomfort that is experienced with sciatica.
Referred to as nerve pain, neuropathic pain is also associated with shingles, phantom pain (the pain felt in an absent body part), carpal tunnel, and fibromyalgia.
Nociplastic
Nociplastic pain is more complex than nociceptive and neuropathic pain types, and only fairly recently recognised as a further pain category (the term was only coined in 2016).
Nociplastic pain refers to pain that persists without any evidence of tissue injury or nerve damage, and may be the result of changes in the way the nervous and immune systems function. The causes of nociplastic pain are not yet fully understood and are the subject of ongoing research and investigation.
Examples of nociplastic pain include tension headaches, complex regional pain syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, and chronic lower back pain.
It is possible for people with chronic pain conditions to experience more than one pain type, and knowing what type of pain you experience can be helpful to inform different avenues of treatment, therapies, and pain management protocols. It is also another reason why chronic pain sufferers seem to benefit more from multidisciplinary health care approaches – diverse therapies may also serve to target a variety of pain types.
Living With Chronic Pain
Chronic pain can have a significant and meaningful effect on a person’s life, and their ability to go about routine, daily tasks. Chronic pain can impact all facets of a person’s life – from sleep, to attending school or going to work and social activities, to exercising, and simple household tasks. Later in life, chronic pain can hinder a person from living independently, and can prematurely trigger the need for residential care.
Many people with chronic pain have developed personalised techniques to manage their symptoms, both independently and with the guidance of a healthcare practitioner, such as their GP. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, many people seek a range of health professionals to manage and treat their pain, including their GP, psychologists, physiotherapists, and other medical specialists including allied and alternative health specialists. Management protocols also involved medications, commonly including NSAIDs and analgesics.
Treating Chronic Pain With Multidisciplinary Care
Many leading pain specialists and research bodies, including Pain Australia and Chronic Pain Australia, now suggest a pain management approach they refer to as biological-psychological-social multidisciplinary management. This is a holistic style of pain management that treats all aspects of pain with a variety of different strategies that can involve movement, diet, medication, relaxation and mindfulness therapies.
The Future of Chronic Pain Treatment
Throughout Australia, both patients and medical practitioners are pushing for effective chronic pain management strategies that recognise chronic pain as a complex condition that requires a holistic, multidisciplinary approach to manage effectively.
Many patients and practitioners now identify best-practice care as one that brings together multiple health professionals – including GPs, physiotherapists, exercise physiologists, pain specialists, psychologists and other specialist services to support people across every aspect of their health.
Psychological strategies, including cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness and relaxation techniques, are also playing a growing role in helping patients improve quality of life. Alongside this, innovative treatments and emerging technologies are expanding options for further personalised care, while a strong emphasis on education, self-management and early intervention supports better outcomes and safer pain management for Australians now and into the future.
