Asked by: Miriem Facundo
healthy living senior health

What are consequences of pain in older adults?

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The elderly are often either untreated or undertreated for pain. The consequences of undertreatment for pain can have a negative impact on the health and quality of life of the elderly, resulting in depression, anxiety, social isolation, cognitive impairment, immobility, and sleep disturbances.


Herein, what causes pain in the elderly?

Arthritis and arthritis-related diseases (such as back pain) are common causes of chronic pain in older adults. Other causes include neuropathies, vertebral compression fractures, cancer and cancer treatments, and advanced chronic diseases such as end-stage heart, lung, and kidney disease.

Also, what causes muscle pain in the elderly? Muscle pain in older adults may be polymyalgia rheumatica. Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is an inflammatory disease that can also be associated with giant cell arteritis (GCA). Both illnesses affect patients aged 50 years and older, with a mean age of 70 years, and are probably a spectrum of one disease.

Subsequently, question is, how do older people cope with pain?

Medication Risks And Contraindications In the Elderly

  1. NSAIDs. NSAIDs are used commonly to treat musculoskeletal pain in the elderly, with some prescribers favoring NSAIDs over opioids for pain management.
  2. Adjuvant Analgesics.
  3. Opioids.
  4. Alzheimer's Disease.
  5. Dementia.
  6. Assessing Pain.
  7. Administering Medications.
  8. Acupuncture.

How does age affect pain?

Age differences in pain perception are less consistent. Some studies indicate older adults are more sensitive to experimental pain than young adults, whereas others suggest a decrease in sensitivity with age. In fact, one study found only 40% of elderly patients were screened for pain conditions.

Related Question Answers

Jamshed Bazikov

Professional

What is the best pain medication for the elderly?

Pain Treatment
  • Analgesics such as Acetaminophen are effective for mild to moderate pain.
  • Opioid pain relievers (narcotics) are powerful prescription drugs used to treat moderate to severe pain.
  • Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are your common aspirin and ibuprofen.

Ferencz Bakaloff

Professional

What is the most common cause of chronic pain in older adults?

The incidence of chronic pain will increase in older patients. The most common causes of chronic pain in this patient population include arthritis, cancer, diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular and neurologic diseases.

Abdelali Beklemishev

Professional

What causes leg pain in older adults?

Joint and nerve pain and muscle cramps in the legs are a common symptom of age, especially for people over 50. Most leg pain is not a medical emergency but is caused by wear and tear, especially related to osteoarthritis on the joints, overuse, or injuries to the bones and ligaments.

Peggie Bens

Explainer

Are aches and pains a normal part of aging?

Now, it is true that occasional aches and pains come with aging -- typically in our knees, hip, and feet. This is due to wear and tear of our bones -- they start to deteriorate over time, and joint spaces narrow. That can cause pain and stiffness. Chronic pain is pain that exists every day for at least six months.

Mireya Enzuza

Explainer

What age do you start to feel aches and pains?

According to Dr. Tingan, most people start noticing back pain between the ages of 40 and 60. However, there isn't necessarily cause for concern if it starts younger—some people begin to feel the effects of an aging spine as young as 30.

Erradi Marciano

Explainer

How do you stop stiffness in old age?

Here are 3 things you can do to avoid stiffness as you age:
Hang over and dangle daily; maybe more than once. Let your hips and legs hold you up as you let your back sway and hang loose! Stiffness in your back affects your comprehension and produces cognitive confusion. Get bodywork!

Shanell El Bachiri

Pundit

How do you stop joint pain in old age?

Avoiding Joint Pain: Protect Your Joints as You Age
  1. Joint Changes with Age. First, it's important to understand how your joints change as you age.
  2. Proper Posture. Bad posture can really put your joints at risk.
  3. Exercise. Physical activity keeps your joints moving and agile.
  4. Maintain a Healthy Weight.
  5. Eat the Right Foods.
  6. Drink Lots of Water.
  7. Quit Smoking.

Aiara Zamsau

Pundit

Is it normal to have aches and pains in your 60s?

The Good News: If you've been active all your life, your bones, joints and muscles can stay in pretty good shape during your 60s. The Not-So-Good News: Aging and inactivity can lead to achy joints because of the wearing down of cartilage, loss of lubricating joint fluid and weaker muscles.

Melecia Wellems

Pundit

Why is Demerol contraindicated in older adults?

Because of age-associated side effects, the use of meperidine (Demerol) is considered inadvisable in elderly patients. Meperidine is a poor drug for control of pain in elderly patients because it is less likely to provide appropriate levels of pain control and because it can lead to delirium or seizures.

Sikandar Mullners

Pundit

Can tramadol cause hallucinations in the elderly?

Musical hallucinations are well described in elderly people, though predominantly in women or in those with depression or hearing impairment.7In the absence of these other possible causes and with a clear temporal relation to the administration of tramadol, we conclude that the tramadol was the cause of the

Idelfonsa Dellen

Pundit

How does tramadol affect the elderly?

The elderly may be especially prone to side effects with tramadol due to lowered liver or kidney function and reduced metabolism or excretion. Patients older than 75 years appear to be more prone to gastrointestinal side effects like constipation (30%) than patients less than 65 years (17%).

Buba Mayrata

Teacher

How do I stop aching and hurting?

Some measures you can take to relieve muscle discomfort from injuries and overuse include:
  1. resting the area of the body where you're experiencing aches and pains.
  2. taking an over-the-counter pain reliever, such as ibuprofen (Advil)
  3. applying ice to the affected area to help relieve pain and reduce inflammation.

Kanesha Stamerjohanns

Teacher

What causes weak legs in the elderly?

Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is a common spinal disease in the elderly. The cardinal symptom of LSS is neurogenic claudication, but not all patients present with such typical symptom. In particular, LSS presenting with rapid progression of leg weakness must be distinguished from other combined diseases.

Cayo Folkl

Teacher

What diseases cause severe muscle pain?

Common causes of muscle pain include:
  • Chronic exertional compartment syndrome.
  • Chronic fatigue syndrome.
  • Claudication.
  • Dermatomyositis.
  • Dystonia.
  • Fibromyalgia.
  • Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid)
  • Influenza (flu) and other viral illness (influenza-like illness)

Vanessa Meni

Teacher

What causes stiffness in old age?

As you age, joint movement becomes stiffer and less flexible because the amount of lubricating fluid inside your joints decreases and the cartilage becomes thinner. Ligaments also tend to shorten and lose some flexibility, making joints feel stiff.

Florian Algeciras

Reviewer

What causes weakness in the elderly?

One of the reasons for the development of muscle weakness in the elderly is decreased physical activity [66]. Inactivity and aging cause a marked relative increase in the endo- and perimysial connective tissue, which results in changes in the mechanical properties of the skeletal muscle [22].

Bintu Nuryshev

Reviewer

At what age do knees start hurting?

Researchers around the world have found that knee pain is common in people who are 65 and older. A recent British study in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatism found that nearly two-thirds of women aged 50 and over experienced persistent, incident, or intermittent knee pain.

Betania Hochgraebe

Reviewer

What causes muscle weakness in the elderly?

Adult Geriatric Muscle Disease. Other possible causes include chronic diseases and low hormone levels. History and Symptoms: Muscle weakness may appear either suddenly, over weeks or months, or gradually over many years. If it appears suddenly, it may be related to other conditions or medications.

Usune Lishansky

Reviewer

What can cause unexplained muscle pain?

Common causes of muscle aches include: overexertion. trauma to an area of the body.

Conditions that most commonly affect the muscles include:
  • anemia.
  • arthritis.
  • chronic fatigue syndrome.
  • claudication.
  • dermatomyositis.
  • influenza, known as flu.
  • fibromyalgia.
  • lupus.

Co-Authored By:

EveryThingWhat Staff Editor

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2nd March, 2020

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