Examination of Pain Comorbid Diagnoses in the Inpatient Rehabilitation Population Across All Impairment Groups.

Objective: Pain is common in inpatient rehabilitation patients; however, the prevalence of pain diagnoses in this population is not well-defined. This study examines comorbid pain diagnoses in inpatient rehabilitation patients across impairment groups.

Design: Adult inpatient rehabilitation patients discharged from January 2016 through December 2019 were identified in the Uniform Data System for Medical Rehabilitation database using a literature-established framework containing International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Clinical (ICD-10-CM) pain diagnoses. Demographic data, clinical data, and pain diagnoses were compared across the 17 rehabilitation impairment groups.

Results: Of 1,925,002 patients identified, 1,347,239 (70.0%) had at least one International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) pain diagnosis. Over half of all patients in each impairment group had at least one pain diagnosis. The most common pain diagnoses were limb/extremity and joint pain, with variation between impairment groups. Female sex and being in the arthritis, major multiple trauma, and pain syndrome impairment groups were associated with a greater odds of a pain diagnosis.

Conclusions: Over half of all patients in each rehabilitation impairment group have a pain diagnosis, which varies between impairment groups. Because of the high prevalence of pain diagnoses, a new focus on pain management in inpatient rehabilitation patients is needed. Rehabilitation outcomes may also be affected by pain.