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Individuals age at varying rates and along physical, cognitive, psychosocial, and sociocultural trajectories.Thus, the elderly comprise the most heterogeneous segment of the population. An understanding of the aging process therefore is crucial as the framework for understanding pain in the elderly.Although pain is not a natural consequence of aging, many elderly persons have health conditions that cause pain. Some elderly persons have cognitive conditions that impair their ability to communicate pain.The psychosocial circumstances of the elderly, particularly dependency issues, have implications for treatment design and goal setting. Sociocultural factors can contribute to misunderstandings between elderly persons and the typically younger clinicians who treat their pain. Beyond treatment efforts, the processes of aging have implications for our study and understanding of pain. Relevant issues include ageism, the definition of pain, association between pain and suicide in the elderly, and distinction between age differences (intercohort variability) and age effects (intra-individual change across the life span). |
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