The Relationship between Pain, Disability, and Sex in African Americans.
Janiece L Walker, Roland J Thorpe, Tracie C Harrison and 5 others
PMID 27553130WHAT IT FOUND
Moderate to extreme pain was linked with difficulty in everyday activities such as eating, bathing, and walking in older African Americans.
The link was seen in both women and men.
Key findings
01In women, bodily pain was significantly associated with ADL disability in all models; in Model 3 the odds ratio for pain was 4.06 (95% CI: 2.63-6.26), and having two or more health conditions had an odds ratio of 3.95 (95% CI: 2.09-7.47).
02In men, bodily pain was the only variable significantly associated with ADL disability, with an odds ratio of 6.44 (95% CI: 2.84-14.57).
0353% of women and 40% of men reported moderate to extreme bodily pain; 59% of women and 50% of men reported ADL disability.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that pain caused ADL disability or that treating pain would improve ADL performance. Participants were older African Americans living in one Mid-Atlantic area, so the results may not apply to older African Americans elsewhere. Pain and ADL difficulty were measured by self-report, so answers could be influenced by how each person understands and perceives pain and daily tasks. The number of men was small compared with women, so the male findings are less stable. People with cognitive impairment or inability to communicate were excluded, so the study does not address patients with more severe cognitive problems.
Declared interests
The supplied text does not report author disclosures. The publication type lists NIH extramural research support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that treating pain will reduce ADL disability. The study was cross-sectional and only showed an association.