There is a significant burden of chronic pain in trans-identified individuals, with an increased risk among those receiving cross-sex hormones

A 2024 large US clinical database study1 of 98,352 trans-identified individuals (56,470 females and 41,882 males) found significantly higher rates of chronic pain compared to the general population. Of particular concern, those receiving cross-sex hormones showed even higher risks – females on testosterone had a 20% increased hazard of chronic pain diagnosis compared to those not taking testosterone, while males on estrogen showed a 19.4% increased risk.

  1. Tabernacki, T., Gilbert, D., Rhodes, S., Scarberry, K., Pope, R., McNamara, M., … & Mishra, K. (2024). The burden of chronic pain in transgender and gender diverse populations: Evidence from a large US clinical database. European Journal of Pain. [Link] ↩︎
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