ZDF documentary shows the burden of children and adolescents with chronic pain

Around 30% of all schoolchildren in Germany suffer from chronic pain, most of them from headaches or musculoskeletal pain. In 8% of cases, the pain is severe and leads to a considerable reduction in quality of life. This is a major burden for affected children and their families. Children and adolescents who suffer from chronic pain are absent from school more often, do less with their friends and are usually under a lot of emotional strain - creating a vicious circle.

"What limits does our body set?" - A ZDF documentary attempts to answer this question

The ZDF series Terra Xplore deals with the questions of what happens in the body when you feel pain and what can be done if the pain persists. The production team visited the German Paediatric Pain Centre at the Vestische Kinder- und Jugendklinik Datteln - Universität Witten/Herdecke. Here they interviewed Dr Julia Wager, private lecturer, child and adolescent psychotherapist and head of the research department.

"Current study results show that 65% of schoolchildren who suffer from chronic pain regularly take pain medication. This is alarming," explains Dr Julia Wager in the 25-minute report by the ZDF team.

Many affected children and adolescents are often not taken seriously

The search for an explanation for their pain can take years for children and adolescents, and many of those affected are accused of imagining the pain. This was also the case with 15-year-old Zoé. She was accompanied for this documentary and is one of around 1,200 patients who receive inpatient or outpatient treatment at the German Paediatric Pain Centre in Datteln every year.

All children and adolescents learn how to deal with their chronic pain and what can help them instead of pain medication. For Zoé, the treatment has changed her life. She learnt how chronic pain develops and was given strategies for dealing with the pain.

Zoé's whole story can be seen at any time in the documentary series "What limits does our body set?" in the ZDF media library.

The programme will be broadcast on ZDF on 23 June 2024 at 18:30.

Further information:

The German Paediatric Pain Centre at the Vestische Kinder- und Jugendklinik Datteln - Universität Witten/Herdecke is considered a reference centre in the care of children and adolescents with chronic pain. For years now, the centre has had one of the largest paediatric pain wards in Europe and a comprehensive range of outpatient therapies. www.Deutsches-Kinderschmerzzentrum.de