Premature mortality in persons with chronic widespread pain (CWP) was not clear. Therefore a large study was conducted to find out if there is an association between premature mortality in persons with widespread chronic pain. Along with to determine its magnitude and establish what factors mediate any relationship.

For this analysis data was taken from the UK Biobank, a cohort of 0.5 million people of 40 to 69 years of age who were recruited throughout Great Britain from 2006 to 2010. The participants who reported pain all over the body' for >3 months were compared with persons without chronic pain. Information on death (with cause) was available until mid-2015. These results in a meta-analysis were included with other published reports to calculate a pooled estimate of excess risk.

The findings showed that about 7130 participants who reported CWP had experienced excess mortality. The main reason for mortality in excess were cancer, cardiovascular, respiratory (5.66adjusted age and sex and other disease-related causes. There was a reduction in the excess risk after adjusting the low levels of physical activity, high body mass index, poor quality diet and smoking. The meta-analysis determined that every study showed significant excess all-cause, cardiovascular and cancer mortality.
Evidence concludes clearly that persons with CWP experience excess mortality. UK Biobank results considerably reduce uncertainty around the magnitude of excess risk and are consistent with the excess being explained by adverse lifestyle factors, which could be targeted in the management of such patients.