A Scale for Assessing Pain in Older Adults: The Influence on Activities of Daily Living

Physical functional impairment generates pain, fear and anguish, impacting the activities of daily living (ADLs) of older adults (OAs); The background was to design an instrument that can measure pain in OA living with pain. Methods: mixed analytical and cross-sectional study in two non-probabilistic samples: 15 experts in the care of OAs and 185 OAs from day homes in three municipalities of the State of Mexico. The instruments used included an integrated scale of 30 items, elaborated with the Delphi technique over three rounds, and the Scale for Measuring Pain in Older Adults (SMPOA), with 30 items divided into four factors. An analysis was conducted using content validity ratios and the Lawshe´s method adapted by Tristán for qualitative studies, with a minimum of 0.87 and a maximum of 1.0. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to structure the underlying factors into a data matrix, addressing the relationships between a set of variables, and a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to validate the scale using the main axis method and rotation via Quartimax with Kaiser normalisation. Results: proposal of a scale to measure pain in MA (EMEDAM). Conclusion: the adapted scale assesses sensory and affective intensity and the influence on the ADLs and can be used in OAs living with acute or chronic pain.