ArticlePain medicine (Malden, Mass.)2026
Cost savings and quality-of-life gains associated with the use of an AI-powered digital tool for self-management of chronic pain based on a multicenter cohort study.
Article in Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundChronic pain is a highly prevalent disease, leading to high health care costs, impaired productivity, and decreased quality of life. An artificial intelligence (AI)-powered digital tool for self-management (PaindrainerTM) has been shown to be an effective treatment in chronic pain and could have potential to reduce the burden on costs and quality of life.
objectiveThe objective of this study was to estimate the cost savings and quality-of-life gains associated with the use of an AI-powered digital tool for self-management of chronic pain. The study is a subsequent health economic analysis of previously published data.
methodResource use and quality-of-life data were derived from a 1-arm, multicenter study in the United States. Differences between baseline and follow-up (6 and 12 weeks) were translated to an annual monetary estimate by using published literature, national statistics, and accepted threshold values for a quality-adjusted life year (QALY).
resultAt 12 weeks, the use of an AI-powered digital tool was associated with a reduction in health care costs of $127 per user and an increase in annual productivity of $930 per user. In addition, the intervention was associated with an increase in health of 0.0275 QALYs, corresponding to a monetized value of $1375.
conclusionThe analysis of cost savings and quality-of-life gains associated with the use of an AI-powered digital tool for pain self-management demonstrates significant potential improvements in measured parameters of up to $2432 per person in total ($7380 per year, assuming 70% compliance), supporting this as an important treatment alternative.
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