Handbook Of Pain Relief In Older Adults

The second edition of the Handbook of Pain Relief in Older Adults: An Evidence-Based Approach expands on the first edition by providing a number of timely new features. Most important of these are the revised recommendations from the American Geriatrics Society on prescribing that reflect the many new agents available since the last guidelines were released in 2001. Additionally, concepts such as synergy in prescribing for older adults have been better delineated in this edition. The most salient features of the original edition have been retained and updated, including the full range of approaches for pain assessment and prevention, interventional strategies, guidance on pharmacotherapy and nonpharmacologic pain relief strategies for seniors, preventive analgesia, the role of rehabilitation in sound pain treatment, legal and public policy issues in pain care for seniors, pain management in long-term care, and even the issue of spirituality as an adjunct to pain management. The second edition also includes a new chapter on resources, which includes organizations, internet websites, and guidance on acquiring additional consultation for pain intervention. Of particular interest is an updated discussion of the effect that electronic medical records and internet-based personal health records will have on pain relief in older adults and a new chapter that serves as a resource guide for patients and caregivers trying to navigate the waters of pain relief assistance. This issue has not been addressed substantively in the pain management literature and the ramifications for older adults are particularly poignant. Comprehensive and practical, the Handbook of Pain Relief in Older Adults: An Evidence-Based Approach (Second Edition) is a comprehensive resource with targeted, practical information that will be of vital importance for all clinicians who provide care for seniors.

A comprehensive assessment of the clinical, psychological, legal, and cultural aspects of dealing with unnecessary pain in the elderly. The authors explore pharmacotherapy (nonopioids, opioids, and adjuvants), interventional strategies, the role of rehabilitation in managing pain in seniors, and the problems of pain management in long-term care. Supplementary features include continuing medical education (CME) certification, a CME posttest and evaluation to be completed and submitted for credit, and an appendix of analgesics that details starting oral doses, maximum daily oral doses, and special considerations for the elderly. 6.5 AMA/PRA category 1 CME credits with completion of included test.

From time to time, professional journals and edited volumes devote some of their pages to considerations of pain and aging as they occur among the aged in different cultures and populations. One starts from several reasonable assumptions, among them that aging per se is not a disease process, yet the risk and frequency of disease processes increase with ongoing years. The physical body's functioning and ability to restore all forms of damage and insult slow down, the immune system becomes compromised, and the slow-growing pathologies reach their critical mass in the later years. The psychological body also becomes weaker, with unfulfilled promises and expectations, and with tragedies that visit individuals and families, and the prospect that whatever worlds remain to be conquered will most certainly not be met with success in the rapidly passing days and years that can only culminate in death. Despair and depression coupled with infirmity and sensory and! or motor inefficiency aggravate both the threshold and the tolerance for discomfort and synergistically collaborate to perpetuate a vicious cycle in which the one may mask the other. Although the clinician is armed with the latest advances in medicine and phar macology, significant improvement continues to elude her or him. The geriatric specialist, all too familiar with such realities, usually can offer little else than a hortative to "learn to live with it," but the powers and effectiveness of learning itself have declined.

Written specifically for older adults who need practical information and advice for managing chronic pain, this easy-to-read, illustrated guide offers effective techniques, exercises, and methods to improve quality of life. With an emphasis on realistic goals, resisting negative thoughts, and mind/body balance, this Second Edition of Pain Management for Older Adults: A Self-Help Guide offers an up-to-date approach to successful pain management, ideal for older adults with chronic pain, physicians and health-care providers, and caregivers.

This clinically focused book provides the essential modalities for managing pain in older patients. Chapters cover a variety of topics important for clinicians, including effective approaches, evaluation, acute and chronic pain, interventional strategies, and addiction issues. Complexities in assessing and treating pain when presented with multiple comorbidities and the unique physical, cognitive, and sensory changes that occur in the elderly are discussed in detail. Practical, concise and authored by leaders in pain medicine, this will serve as an invaluable guide to practitioners that care for older people.

This definitive clinical reference comprehensively reviews the most advanced methods for assessing the person in pain. The field's leading authorities present essential information and tools for evaluating psychosocial, behavioral, situational, and medical factors in patients' subjective experience, functional impairment, and response to treatment. Empirically supported instruments and procedures are detailed, including self-report measures, observational techniques, psychophysiological measures, and more. Best-practice recommendations are provided for assessing the most prevalent pain syndromes and for working with children, older adults, and people with communication difficulties. The book also weighs in on the limitations of existing methods and identifies key directions for future research.

"The care of older adults suffering with pain is a difficult task that calls for understanding as well as compassion. Dr. Quinlan-Colwell has written an excellent book that deals with every facet of the problems that are encountered by caregivers....[This book] provides the reader with valuable knowledge that will diminish suffering and enrich the lives of people confronting new, often frightening, problems." From the Foreword by Ronald Melzack, PhD, FRSC Professor Emeritus McGill University "This is a well-written and concise book....Nurses and other healthcare professionals will certainly find this book a useful resource for understanding and managing geriatric pain."--Clinical Nurse Specialist Older adults can be especially susceptible to the debilitating effects of chronic pain, yet there are often barriers to successfully alleviating pain on the part of elderly patients and the health care professionals who treat them. This comprehensive guide to geriatric pain management provides the most current information available on assessment and treatment of pain in older adults. In a concise, reader-friendly format, the book provides techniques, tips, and tools for assessing pain and examines barriers to appropriate treatment. It addresses the physiological and psychosocial factors underlying the process and occurrence of pain and helps nurses to develop a comprehensive multimodal approach to pain management that includes pharmacological and nonpharmacological interventions. The guide provides detailed coverage of medications commonly used for pain management, including all contraindications and side effects, so that nurses will be able to evaluate the best use of a medication in the context of comorbidities and sensitivities of each individual. Also addressed are chronic illnesses common to the elderly population, palliative and hospice care, treatment of concurrent depression and anxiety, treatment of cognitively impaired elderly, and techniques for assessment and intervention in cases of substance abuse. Key Features: Provides concise yet comprehensive information on assessment and treatment of geriatric pain Includes detailed coverage of a great variety of pain medications, including contraindications and side effects Explores barriers to appropriate treatment Covers chronic diseases of the elderly, palliative and hospice care, depression and anxiety, substance abuse, and treatment of cognitively impaired elderly Written by a highly respected practitioner and educator in geriatric pain management Includes case studies, handy tables, questions for reflection, and references for additional study