LAUSR

Epidemiology, as defined by the World Health Organization is: “the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related states or events (including disease), and the applications of this study to the control of diseases and other health problems” [1]. Thus, epidemiology is not only about collecting numbers, but also takes into account the consequences of quantified indicators, which means prevention. In the case of chronic pain, prevention not only means prevention of the disease that brought about chronic pain, but also the consequences, i. e. loss of function and productivity, work disability, mental disorders, sexual discontent, inappropriate health care utilization, etc. [2]. Therefore, epidemiology is necessary to quantify a health hazard in a certain population, to prioritize efforts in health care, and to improve preventive and clinical management, limit disease severity and minimize disability. This edition of the “Wiener klinische Wochenschrift” presents one of the very few population-based studies showing the epidemiology of pain and chronic pain in the general Austrian population,