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Collins JT, Walsh DA, Gladman JRF, Patrascu M, Husebo BS, Adam E, Cowley A, Gordon AL, Ogliari G, Smaling H, Achterberg W. The Difficulties of Managing Pain in People Living with Frailty: The Potential for Digital Phenotyping. Drugs Aging 2024; 41:199-208. [PMID: 38401025 PMCID: PMC10925563 DOI: 10.1007/s40266-024-01101-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/26/2024]
Abstract
Pain and frailty are closely linked. Chronic pain is a risk factor for frailty, and frailty is a risk factor for pain. People living with frailty also commonly have cognitive impairment, which can make assessment of pain and monitoring of pain management even more difficult. Pain may be sub-optimally treated in people living with frailty, people living with cognitive impairment and those with both these factors. Reasons for sub-optimal treatment in these groups are pharmacological (increased drug side effects, drug-drug interactions, polypharmacy), non-pharmacological (erroneous beliefs about pain, ageism, bidirectional communication challenges), logistical (difficulty in accessing primary care practitioners and unaffordable cost of drugs), and, particularly in cognitive impairment, related to communication difficulties. Thorough assessment and characterisation of pain, related sensations, and their functional, emotional, and behavioural consequences ("phenotyping") may help to enhance the assessment of pain, particularly in people with frailty and cognitive impairment, as this may help to identify who is most likely to respond to certain types of treatment. This paper discusses the potential role of "digital phenotyping" in the assessment and management of pain in people with frailty. Digital phenotyping is concerned with observable characteristics in digital form, such as those obtained from sensing-capable devices, and may provide novel and more informative data than existing clinical approaches regarding how pain manifests and how treatment strategies affect it. The processing of extensive digital and usual data may require powerful algorithms, but processing these data could lead to a better understanding of who is most likely to benefit from specific and targeted treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jemima T Collins
- University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham, UK
- Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK
| | - David A Walsh
- University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham, UK
- Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Nottinghamshire, UK
- Pain Centre Versus Arthritis, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | | | - Monica Patrascu
- Centre for Elderly and Nursing Home Medicine, University of Bergen, 5007, Bergen, Norway
- Neuro-SysMed Center, University of Bergen, 5007, Bergen, Norway
- Complex Systems Laboratory, University Politehnica of Bucharest, 60042, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Bettina S Husebo
- Centre for Elderly and Nursing Home Medicine, University of Bergen, 5007, Bergen, Norway
- Neuro-SysMed Center, University of Bergen, 5007, Bergen, Norway
| | - Esmee Adam
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Alison Cowley
- University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK
| | - Adam L Gordon
- University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
- NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham, UK
- University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Trust, Derby, UK
| | - Giulia Ogliari
- Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK
| | - Hanneke Smaling
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Wilco Achterberg
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Center, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands.
- LUMC Center for Medicine for Older People (LCO), Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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