Self-Reported Pain Intensity and Associated Distress in Children Aged 4-18 Years on Admission, Discharge, and One-Week Follow Up to Emergency Department

Abstract

A greater proportion of children report high intensity of distress from pain than of pain intensity itself when in the ED. Only a small proportion of children received analgesics during the visit to the ED and only slightly more on discharge. Although pain seems to resolve by 1 week, distress is less likely to have resolved. More attention needs to be paid both to pain children are experiencing in the ED and equally to the accompanying distress.