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Updated: Jul 6, 2026
08:47
Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
[Pain in elderly people with dementia]
1Department of Nursing, Institute of Nursing, Yang Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Hu Li Za Zhi the Journal of Nursing
|April 9, 2008
Summary
Assessing pain in elderly individuals with cognitive impairment is challenging due to subjective interpretation and communication difficulties. This study reviews obstacles and proposes a multidimensional pain assessment model for better detection in dementia patients.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Neurology
- Pain Management
Background:
- Aging increases the risk of cognitive impairment, including Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
- Cognitive impairment significantly affects verbal and non-verbal communication, complicating subjective experiences like pain.
- Accurate pain assessment in cognitively impaired elderly individuals is crucial but remains a significant clinical challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the difficulties in pain assessment for the elderly with cognitive impairment.
- To explore changes in the academic concept of pain and identify obstacles to pain recognition.
- To present a multidimensional model for pain assessment in this population.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature review of the past decade.
- Analysis of challenges in pain assessment for the elderly with cognitive impairment.
- Exploration of factors hindering pain recognition.
Main Results:
- Classic pain definitions are inadequate for cognitively impaired elderly.
- Pain indicators are unclear in this population.
- Existing pain instruments and informants show ineffectiveness across varying cognitive levels.
Conclusions:
- Obstacles to pain assessment stem from inappropriate definitions, unclear indicators, and ineffective tools.
- A multifaceted pain assessment model is proposed for elderly patients with varying cognitive impairment.
- Further research is needed to validate the feasibility of the multidimensional pain assessment model.
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