Background: For the first time, the International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision (ICD-11) contains a coding system categorizing chronic pain into primary and secondary pain syndromes. Recognizing chronic pain in a systematic classification represents an opportunity to improve pain coding and treatment throughout all healthcare systems. Of the general practitioner consultations, 22% to 50% are related to pain. A Swedish study have shown that – of those presenting to primary care with pain – the pain would be classed as chronic according to ICD-11 in 48% of cases.
Methods: Many different coding systems are in use for primary care, e.g. ICD, ICPC, SNOMED and Readcode. The most widely used classification is the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC). It was developed by the World Organization of Family Doctors’ (WONCA) International Classification Committee (WICC), and linked to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). 
Results: For the time being, there is no ICD11 Primary Care linearization for chronic pain. Our pilot field testing has indicated a ICD-11 linearization with ICPC-2, i.e. a classification of chronic pain is applicable in primary care (Table 1), but no official classification exists. However, ICPC-3 will choose ICD10-11 and SNOMED concepts that are important for primary care, the same for cross references to function (ICF) and public health (ICHI) to develop this.
Conclusion: The coding system for chronic pain proposed in ICD-11 is feasible to apply in primary care. It is to be welcomed for its numerous potential benefits in managing chronic pain in primary care and beyond.

ICD11 PC LINEARIZATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF CHRONIC PAIN IN PRIMARY CARE