This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ghafoor, V. L. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

Management of Painful Conditions in the Elderly

Fairview Pain Management Center and Clinical Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, vghafoo1{at}fairview.org

Persistent pain conditions in the elderly are most often due to degenerative disorders of the spine, osteoarthritis of the joints, malignant cancer, and vascular disorders. The consequences of persistent pain include depression, anxiety, de-creased socialization, sleep disturbance, impaired ambulation, and increased healthcare utilization. Proper pain assessment is the key to selecting appropriate treatment. Barriers to pain assessment are associated with the patient's perception of pain and the caregiver's attitude towards providing effective treatment. All elderly patients have age-related physiologic changes that affect absorption, distribution, metabolism, and clearance of medications used for pharmacologic treatment. Medications used in pain management include opioids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, gabapentin, nortriptylline, desipramine, and lidocaine 5%patch. Pharmacists have an important role in the monitoring of medications in elderly. As the utilization of prescription medication continues to increase in the elderly, pharmacists are becoming the frontline of healthcare care for this population.

Key Words: Persistent • pain • elderly • assessment • medication

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?