Also included in this publication is a list of resources for additional information. This publication was written by Linda C. Batiste, MS, and Beth A. Loy, MS, Human Factors Consultants with the Job Accommodation Network. The following information regarding chronic pain was edited from several sources, including many of the resources listed in the resource section of this publication. The information is not intended to be medical advice. If medical advice is needed, appropriate medical professionals should be consulted.
Chronic pain is any frequent or continuous pain that has lasted for more than a few months.
It may be generally described as any persisting pain that occurs beyond the usual course of a disease or beyond the reasonable time for an injury to heal. Symptoms of chronic pain are loss of appetite, depression, and exhaustion. The pain usually overwhelms all other symptoms and often individuals cannot work without some type of accommodation. Chronic pain may be the result of an injury, infection, or an ongoing cause of pain. Some individuals, however, have chronic pain in the absence of any past injury or disorder.