The pharmacological management of pain in older patients

Abstract

Various physical changes occur with aging, and the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain such as low back pain and arthralgia, as well as postherpetic neuralgia and neuropathic pain represented by diabetic neuropathy increases... It is no exaggeration to say that pain is "a part of aging", and many elderly people have some kind of physical pain and it lasts for a long time. On the other hand, in the elderly, sensitivity to analgesics also changes due to changes in physical physiology and cognitive decline. In this chapter, we explain the indications and precautions for drug therapy for elderly pain patients.