title: Persistent Pain Among Older Adults Discharged Home From the Emergency Department After Motor Vehicle Crash: A Prospective Cohort Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Motor vehicle crashes are the second most common form of trauma among older adults. We seek to describe the incidence, risk factors, and consequences of persistent pain among older adults evaluated in the emergency department (ED) after a motor vehicle crash.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a prospective longitudinal study of patients aged 65 years or older who presented to one of 8 EDs after motor vehicle crash between June 2011 and June 2014 and were discharged home after evaluation. ED evaluation was done through in-person interview; follow-up data were obtained through mail-in survey or telephone call. Pain severity (0 to 10 scale) overall and for 15 parts of the body were assessed at each follow-up point. Principal component analysis was used to assess the dimensionality of the locations of pain data. Participants reporting pain severity greater than or equal to 4 attributed to the motor vehicle crash at 6 months were defined as having persistent pain.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 161 participants, 72% reported moderate to severe pain at the ED evaluation. At 6 months, 26% of participants reported moderate to severe motor vehicle crash-related pain. ED characteristics associated with persistent pain included acute pain severity; pain located in the head, neck, and jaw or lower back and legs; poor self-rated health; less formal education; pre-motor vehicle crash depressive symptoms; and patient's expected time to physical recovery more than 30 days. Compared with individuals without persistent pain, those with persistent pain were substantially more likely at 6-month follow-up to have also experienced a decline in their capacity for physical function (73% versus 36%; difference=37%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 19% to 52%), a new difficulty with activities of daily living (42% versus 17%; difference=26%; 95% CI 10% to 43%), a 1-point or more reduction in overall self-rated health on a 5-point scale (54% versus 30%; difference=24%; 95% CI 6% to 41%), and a change in their living situation to obtain additional help (23% versus 8%; difference=15%; 95% CI 2% to 31%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Among older adults discharged home from the ED post-evaluation after a motor vehicle crash, persistent pain is common and frequently associated with functional decline and disability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC; Department of Anesthesiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC. Electronic address: tplattsm@med.unc.edu.
authors.forename: Timothy F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Platts-Mills
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Sean A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Flannigan
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Andrey V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Bortsov
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, St Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ypsilanti, MI.
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Domeier
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI.
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Swor
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Florida Health, Jacksonville, FL.
authors.forename: Phyllis L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Hendry
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Peak
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Baystate Medical Center, Springfield, MA.
authors.forename: Niels K
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Rathlev
authors.affiliation: Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI.
authors.forename: Jeffrey S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, North Shore Hospital System, Manhasset, NY.
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC.
authors.forename: Francis J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Keefe
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Philip D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Sloane
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC; Department of Anesthesiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Samuel A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: McLean
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010351:Patient Discharge; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors