Men, masculinity, and pain.

TL;DR: This selective review will focus on 3 core areas (morbidity/mortality, health behaviours, and masculinity) and also the relationship between them and will mostly highlight psychosocial factors.

Abstract: Men’s pain is not well understood, despite clear evidence that sex and gender play important roles in pain and pain behavior. Outside pain, men’s health has emerged as an area of interest, and not only identified issues specific to men but also helped us better understand male–female differences as well. By taking amen’s health approach to pain, we can view existing evidence in a different way and identify potential gaps in our understanding of men’s (and women’s) pain. The purpose of this selective review is therefore to identify key themes from the men’s health literature and consider themwithin the context of men’s pain. Although this review will mostly highlight psychosocial factors, it is acknowledged that biological factors contribute tomen’s pain. The review will focus on 3 core areas (morbidity/mortality, health behaviours, and masculinity) and also the relationship between them (Fig. 1). The final section considers future directions, including implications for clinical research and practice.