Chronic Pain and the Risk of Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

The relationship between chronic pain and dementia risk has been extensively studied, but findings remain inconclusive. We conducted an updated meta-analysis to synthesize evidence from recent large-scale cohort studies. Two authors independently and systematically searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure for cohort studies published through April 2025, with a minimum follow-up of one year. Hazard ratios (HRs) were considered equivalent to risk ratios (RRs) assuming low event rates. Random-effect models pooled risk ratios (RR) with 95