Pain-Related and Psychosocial Functioning in Gender-Diverse Youth with Chronic Pain Prior to and Following the Start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Abstract

The health disparities experienced by gender-diverse youth have not yet been adequately examined within specific pediatric populations, such as chronic pain. Furthermore, such disparities need to be examined within the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, a time when clinicians observed an increase in gender-diverse patients seeking care for pediatric chronic pain. The goal of this study is to better understand the clinical pain-related and psychosocial presentation of gender-diverse youth who sought treatment for chronic pain prior to and following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Deidentified intake data were identified using the data repository of an outpatient multidisciplinary pain clinic at a tertiary hospital between December 2017 and November 2023. Descriptive data and the comparison of the gender-diverse patients presenting before and following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic are presented. Gender-diverse participants with pediatric chronic pain generally reported psychological functioning within the "moderate" range and pain-related measures in the "elevated" range. No significant differences were found between youth presenting for care prior to and following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. 92% of the sample was seen following the start of the pandemic. Far more gender-diverse participants sought treatment for chronic pain following the start of the pandemic. More research, including qualitative data about patient experiences, is needed to ensure pain providers are offering affirming care.