Pain speeds up the ageing process

People with chronic pain have levels of disability similar to people who are two to three decades older and don’t have pain.

A study in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that people with moderate and severe pain start to experience reduced mobility and functionality at a much younger age.

The findings were based on the 2004 Health and Retirement Study which looked at 18,531 participants in the USA aged 50 and over.

The study looked at the effects of age on mobility, stair climbing, upper extremity tasks and activities of daily living.

A quarter of participants (24 per cent) had significant pain and in all four areas, these participants did not perform as well as the participants who did not suffer from pain.

Thirty-seven participants aged 50-50 and without pain were able to jog a mile and 91 per cent could walk several city blocks.

However in the same age group, only nine per cent of those with pain could jog a mile and just 50 per cent could walk several blocks.

“After adjustment for demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status, comorbid conditions, depression, obesity, and health habits, across all four measures, participants with significant pain were at much higher risk for having functional limitations,” said lead author Dr Kenneth Covinsky from the Division of Geriatrics at University of California, San Francisco.

The study’s authors say it is the first piece of research that directly examines the relationship between pain and functionality across the lifespan.

“We think it is likely that…pain and disability probably can act together in ways that make both problems worsen in a downward spiral.

“One implication of our study is that pain and disability may not be fully separate processes, but may often be part of the same underlying process. Patients may be better served if pain and disability are evaluated and treated jointly rather than treated as separate issues.”