Pain intensity assessment: a comparison of selected pain intensity scales for use in cognitively intact and cognitively impaired African American older adults

Background. Although psychosocial and health factors impact insomnia symptoms, less is known about these effects in economically disadvantaged African-American older adults. Aims. This study investigated social and health determinants of insomnia symptoms among economically disadvantaged African-American older adults. Methods. This survey enrolled 398 African-American older adults (age ≥ 65 years) from economically disadvantaged areas of South Los Angeles. Gender, age, educational attainment, financial difficulty, number of chronic diseases, self-rated health, pain intensity, and depression were covariates. Total insomnia, insomnia symptoms, and insomnia impact were our outcomes. Linear regression was applied for data analysis. Results. Based on linear regression, higher financial difficulty (B = 0.48, 95% CI = 0.35–0.61), smoking status (B = 1.64, 95% CI = 0.13–3.16), higher pain intensity (B = 0.39, 95% CI = 0.11–0.67), higher number of chronic diseases (B = 0.34, 95% CI = 0.05–0.64), and more depressive symptoms (B = 0.35, 95% CI = 0.12–0.57) were associated with a higher frequency of insomnia symptoms. Based on a logistic regression model, lower age (B = 0.91, 95% CI = 0.91–1.00) and high financial difficulty (OR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.08–1.24), pain (OR = 2.08, 95% CI = 1.14–3.80), chronic disease (OR = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.07–1.51) and depression (OR = 2.38, 95% CI = 1.22–4.65) were associated with higher odds of possible clinical insomnia. We also found specific predictors for insomnia symptoms and insomnia impact. Conclusions. Among African-American older adults in economically disadvantaged areas of South Los Angeles, insomnia symptoms co-occur with other economic, physical, and mental health challenges such as financial difficulty, smoking, multimorbidity, pain, and depression. There is a need to address sleep as a component of care of economically disadvantaged African-American older adults who have multiple social and health challenges.

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Psychometric Evaluation of Selected Pain Intensity Scales for Use with Cognitively Impaired and Cognitively Intact Older Adults

Rehabilitation Nursing ◽

10.1002/j.2048-7940.2005.tb00360.x ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 30 (2) ◽

pp. 55-61 ◽

Cited By ~ 81

Author(s):

Laurie Jowers Taylor ◽

Judy Harris ◽

Cynthia D. Epps ◽

Keela Herr

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Psychometric Evaluation ◽

Cognitively Impaired ◽

Cognitively Intact

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Music Is Healing: Developing a Music Module for a Pain Management Intervention for African American Older Adults

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.2967 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 815-815

Author(s):

Mary Janevic ◽

Sheria Robinson-Lane ◽

Afton Hassett ◽

Rebecca Courser

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

African American ◽

Pain Management ◽

Health Workers ◽

New Music ◽

Participant Engagement ◽

Management Intervention ◽

Phone Calls ◽

Positive Memories ◽

African American Older Adults

Abstract Music has a known analgesic effect. Our multidisciplinary team is developing a music-focused module for Positive STEPS, a pain self-management intervention based on principles of positive psychology. The priority population is African American older adults with disabling chronic pain. Positive STEPS is delivered via website and phone calls from community health workers. To inform program design, we conducted two focus groups with older adults in Detroit (n=16; 100% female and African American; 75% age 70+). All participants said they would enjoy using music to cope with pain. Content analysis revealed the following themes regarding music for pain management: it elicits positive memories, reduces stress, motivates exercise and daily activities, and promotes relaxation. Participants offered ideas for music-focused activities, including learning about unfamiliar genres and using music for meditation/relaxation. Findings will inform the design of a new music module, to be pilot-tested for its effect on participant engagement and pain-related outcomes.

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The Health and Well-Being of African-American Older Adults With a History of Incarceration

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igaa057.1633 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 506-506

Author(s):

Rodlescia Sneed

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

African American ◽

African Americans ◽

Well Being ◽

Formerly Incarcerated ◽

Older Prisoners ◽

Health Related ◽

History Of ◽

Health And Well Being ◽

African American Older Adults

Abstract African-Americans are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. Longer prison stays and release programs for older prisoners may result in an increased number of community-dwelling older adults with a history of incarceration. In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in research on health-related outcomes for currently incarcerated older adults; however, there has been little inquiry into outcomes for formerly incarcerated African-American older adults following community re-entry. In this study, we used secondary data from the Health and Retirement Study to describe employment, economic, and health-related outcomes in this population. Twelve percent of the 2238 African-Americans in our sample had been previously incarcerated. Those who had been previously incarcerated had higher rates of lung disease, arthritis, back problems, mobility problems, and mental health issues than their counterparts. They also had higher rates of hospitalization and lower use of dental health services. Further, while they did not experience lower employment rates than those with no criminal history, those who had been incarcerated had more physically demanding jobs and reported greater economic strain. Given the disproportionate incarceration rates among African-Americans, the aging of the prison population, and the increase in community re-entry for older prisoners, research that explores factors that impact the health and well-being of formerly incarcerated individuals has broad impact. Future work should focus on addressing the needs of this vulnerable population of African-American older adults.

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The Role of Race in Relations of Social Support to Hippocampal Volumes Among Older Adults

Research on Aging ◽

10.1177/01640275211017268 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 016402752110172

Author(s):

Desirée C. Bygrave ◽

Constance S. Gerassimakis ◽

Denée T. Mwendwa ◽

Guray Erus ◽

Christos Davatzikos ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Older Adults ◽

African American ◽

Disease Risk ◽

Total Sample ◽

Hippocampal Volume ◽

Brain Pathology ◽

Resonance Imaging ◽

African American Older Adults

Evidence suggests social support may buffer brain pathology. However, neither its association with hippocampal volume, a marker of Alzheimer’s disease risk, nor the role of race in this association has been fully investigated. Multiple regression analyses examined relations of total social support to magnetic resonance imaging-assessed gray matter (GM) hippocampal volumes in the total sample ( n = 165; mean age = 68.48 year), and in race-stratified models of African American and White older adults, adjusting for select covariates. Results showed greater social support was associated with greater GM hippocampal volumes among African American older adults only ( p < .01). Our findings suggest greater total social support may play a role in supporting the hippocampus, particularly among African American older adults, who had lower hippocampal volumes than their White counterparts. Further research is needed to test these questions longitudinally and examine which aspects of social support may promote hippocampal integrity, specifically.

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