Wire · Echonomia Post
1 hour ago Galya Dimitrova South of England PA Researchers said their findings highlighted the importance of regular mental health assessments and greater support for teenagers living with chronic pain More than half of teenagers treated for chronic pain have thought about self-harm, a study has found. The research led by University of Oxford and Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust shows that 58% of the 77 surveyed young people aged 12 to 18 reported lifetime thoughts of self-harm, while 47% reported self-harm behaviour. Findings also show their perceived burdensomeness and hopelessness were "strongly associated" with self-harm thoughts and behaviours.
The Department of Health has been contacted for a comment. Researchers said that was the first study to examine self-harm thoughts and behaviours directly within a UK paediatric chronic pain clinic, rather than in the general adolescent population. It is supported by Medical Research UK and Arthritis UK and participants attended the Oxford Centre for Children and Young People in Pain - a specialist NHS pain service.
According to the data, 27% of them had thought about self-harm in the two weeks prior to the survey and 7% had engaged in self-harm behaviour during that period. Researchers said older teenagers attending pain services "may be especially vulnerable", as rates had risen "notably" in mid-adolescence. They note other studies to-date have estimated that 14-23% of teenagers in the general population had thought about self-harm at some point in their life, and 5-16% have engaged in it over their lifetime.
The rates for the surveyed teenagers were linked to two main impacts - feeling a burden to others and a sense of hopelessness. The results show links to struggles with socialising, as well as intrusive thoughts and difficulties with attention due to pain. The researchers added that the intensity of adolescents' pain and their physical impairment themselves were not linked to self-harm thoughts and behaviours.
"Our findings highlight the importance of paying attention to psychological wellbeing when young people first present to pain services, routinely asking about distress, and having clear pathways in place to provide appropriate support," said lead researcher Dr Verena Hinze. Dr Angela Hind, Medical Research UK chief executive, said "too many young people with chronic pain are struggling in silence". "It's time something changed.
This research shines a light on something too often overlooked: the very real toll of living with chronic pain on young people's mental health," she said. If you've been affected by the issues in this story, help and support is available via the BBC Action Line . Similar stories Related Links
Source: BBC
