Pain and Aging: A Call to Those with the Power of Inquiry, the Skills to Teach, and the Desire to Heal

Abstract

Unlike other medical specialties, geriatric medicine arose not from a unique body of knowledge, but because of the need for one. This “development out of necessity” principle also applies to the field of pain and aging, which is still in its infancy. Geriatrics practitioners have long realized the challenges of treating pain in older adults imposed by their tremendous physical and cognitive heterogeneity. In response to this realization, some have established successful multidisciplinary pain management clinics for older patients [1,2]. Others have highlighted the age-related pain management disparities that exist in multiple settings of care (e.g., emergency rooms, hospitals, outpatient clinics, and long-term care facilities) across multiple disciplines (e.g., physicians and nurses), and for multiple pain disorders (e.g., acute and chronic pain, malignant and nonmalignant pain), so as to spur practitioners into action [3–11]. The American Geriatrics Society has published comprehensive pain management guidelines to help practitioners navigate the sometimes murky waters of pain management for older adults [12]. Practitioners have established the need to advance …