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Evaluation of Multidimensional Pain Measures for Older Adults: A Scoping Review
Jeffrey T Boon1, Lisa Weimar2, Ann Quinlan-Colwell3
1The Ohio State University College of Nursing, Columbus, OH.
Objectives:
The purpose of this study is to review multidimensional pain assessment measures in older adults.
Design:
This study is a scoping review.
Data Sources:
Articles in peer-reviewed journals describing development or psychometric testing of multidimensional pain measures in older adults aged 60 and over were included. Articles were from Ovid MEDLINE, Embase (Elsevier), and CINAHL Complete (EBSCOhost) and published from database inception to 7 August 2024.
Review/Analysis Methods:
Articles were retrieved using a search strategy guided by medical librarians. After article screening by two authors (first by title/abstract and then full text review), data were extracted in Covidence software describing the setting and sample of each study as well as dimensions of pain measured, language, and psychometric properties. Data tables were developed and synthesized to identify patterns, trends, and gaps in the literature.
Results:
Thirty-two articles were included for review describing studies from 17 countries of measures in 15 languages. Pain intensity, interference, and affect/mood were the most measured dimensions. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were the most common forms of reliability measured while construct, concurrent, and convergent validity were the most common forms of validity. There is significant heterogeneity among the studies and measures. There is no strong evidence for one measure to be recommended for use in older adults.
Conclusions:
This scoping review found that the current tools measuring pain in older adults cover the dimensions of pain intensity, pain interference, and affect/mood. Given the interindividual variability in co-morbidities and ability to communicate pain in older adult populations, ongoing development and further validation of the multidimensional assessment tools continues to be needed.
Nursing Practice Implications:
Nurses should use established multidimensional measures for pain assessment in older adults and promote the ongoing development and validation of measures for this population.
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