title: The importance of pain management in older people with dementia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pain is common in people with dementia, representing a critical aspect of treatment and care. However, there remain considerable gaps in evidence to support pain assessment and treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  An updated literature search focussing on systematic reviews and randomized controlled trials.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There are key areas of consistency around the prevalence, causes and current treatment trends for pain in dementia, the impact of untreated pain and the need for an accurate, fully validated assessment tool.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Accurate assessment due to inherent issues in dementia is a critical challenge. There is also a lack of evidence around alternative treatment options.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  New pain predictors are being identified, including physical function, depression and specific pain types, which should inform assessment methodology.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Future research should focus on developing integrated pain management approaches with optimized assessment and evidence-based treatment guidance.
authors.affiliation: Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases, King's College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Corbett
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Elderly and Nursing Home Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway.
authors.forename: Bettina S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Husebo
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Primary Care Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Wilco P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Achterberg
authors.affiliation: Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway.
authors.forename: Dag
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Aarsland
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Elderly and Nursing Home Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Ane
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Erdal
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Elderly and Nursing Home Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway elisabeth.flo@igs.uib.no.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Flo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends; D003704:Dementia / Q000150:complications*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D059408:Pain Management / Q000379:methods*; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000379:methods
keywords: analgesia; care; dementia; pain; treatment