title: Pain intensity is associated with both performance-based disability and self-reported disability in a sample of older adults attending primary health care centers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Older adults' function level can be used as a predictor of future detrimental events, such as disability, reliance on others, risk of institutionalization and likelihood of death. The assessment of function at the primary health care centers using self-reported and/or performance based measures is of prime importance.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether personal factors, pain, depression and physical activity are associated with self-reported and performance based disability for older adults aged ≥ 60 years attending primary health care centers, as measured by the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0) and Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), respectively.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants (196 females and 55 males; mean age ± SD = 70.87 ± 7.76) had their pain, self-reported disability, performance, physical activity levels and depressive symptoms assessed. Regression analyses were performed with self-reported and performance-based disability as the dependent variable and age, sex, education, chronic conditions, depression, physical activity and pain characteristics as dependent variables.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean (SD) results for SPPB were 8.45 (2.86) and 20.06 (8.21) for WHODAS. Pain intensity, depression, pain frequency, number of chronic conditions and level of physical activity explained 44% of the self-reported disability variance. Pain intensity, age, level of physical activity, years of formal education and chronic conditions explained 37% of the performance variance. Pain intensity alone explained 27% and 18% of the self-reported and performance based disability, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings indicate that primary health care interventions should target pain intensity, depressive symptoms and physical activity as a means to preventing or decreasing both self-reported and performance based disability.
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal. Electronic address: asilva@ua.pt.
authors.forename: Anabela G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Queirós
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: Margarida
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cerqueira
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Sciences, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
authors.forename: Nelson P
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Rocha
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003863:Depression / Q000150:complications; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000523:psychology; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000150:complications; D011320:Primary Health Care; D057566:Self Report; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
keywords: Determinants; Pain intensity; Performance-based disability; Self-reported disability