According to a recent study, female veterans have a higher tolerance to pain than their male counterparts. Researchers from the VA Connecticut Healthcare System and the Yale University School of Medicine conducted the first study examining pain suffered by male and female soldiers as result of Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom, or OEF/OIF.

Approximately 60 percent of OEF/OIF vets were assessed in regard to pain levels during the study period. An article appeared in Pain Medicine, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anesthetists, and the International Spine Intervention Society.

Studying differences between moderate to severe pain levels, soldiers who had been discharged between Oct. 1, 2001, and Nov. 30, 2007, were evaluated by Sally Haskell, M.D., and the research team. Research samples were limited to 153,212 veterans - 18,481 females and 134,731 males.

Researchers found that female vets were less likely to report any pain (38.1 percent) than male veterans (44 percent). Interestingly, female soldiers were more apt to report moderate-severe pain over persistent, ongoing pain.

"We were surprised by the lower pain prevalence in women veterans, which is contrary to studies conducted in civilian populations," Haskell said.

The study hypothesized that the lower pain prevalence in women veterans may reflect differences in exposure to combat trauma. Assessing the true injury risk for female soldiers is difficult as women do not serve in direct combat roles. They have supportive roles putting them in harms way, researchers noted. Also, female veterans tend not to seek medical attention (through the VA) as often as men, according to a related study.

As the number of women serving in the armed forces continues to rise, according to a 2008 report published by the Department of Defense, the VA is ramping up efforts to better serve female soldiers.

"The VA is looking at ways to better understand the prevalence of pain as it pertains to both men and women veterans," Haskell said. "Examining ways men and women experience pain and the treatment they receive is important for policy makers to understand and thus manage."