title: Doloplus-2 pain assessment: an effective tool in patients over 85 years with advanced dementia and persistent pain.
abstract: Persistent pain in the elderly with dementia is neglected and effective pain diagnostic tools still lack. The aim of the study was to re-assess pain after 1 year in a group of elderly with dementia, resident in a Nursing Home. Doloplus-2 scale was adopted to detect pain and to evaluate its adequacy to address analgesia. Thirty-six out of 90 residents were affected by moderate-severe dementia and 23 patients with persistent pain were enrolled in the study. The results showed a significant reduction of Doloplus-2 score in the observational period (p <0.001) and of its mean score below the pain threshold (p <0.0001). This case analysis confirmed the clinical utility of Doloplus-2 to detect pain in patients with very advanced age and with severe dementia. The tool also confirmed its handiness and clinical applicability by nurses in order to support a systematic pain assessment in long term care.
authors: Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, University of Genova, Italy. Fiammetta.Monacelli@unige.it
authors: F
authors: F
authors: Monacelli
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Vasile Nurse
authors: P
authors: P
authors: Odetti
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Traverso
mesh_terms: D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing*; D005260:Female; D016330:Frail Elderly; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing*; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000451:nursing*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results