Pain Is Commonplace Among Aging Men & Women

Among older men and women, pain is common and is often associated with significant declines in physical function and ability to live independently.  Kushang V. Patel, from the University of Washington (Washington, USA), and colleagues analyzed data from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study, involving 7601 men and women over the age of 65 years. The data revealed that 18.7 million older Americans were afflicted by bothersome pain in the last month, equating to prevalence of 52.9%. Nearly three-quarters of the study subjects experienced pain in multiple sites throughout the body, with increasing sites of pain correlating to issues with mobility. The study authors warn that: “bothersome pain in the last month was reported by half of the older adult population of the United States in 2011 and was strongly associated with decreased physical function.”