A study in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society reports that middle aged people with pain develop limits to their ability to function normally associated with people 20 to 30 years older.
The four physical abilities examined were: walking or jogging; stair climbing; ability to perform tasks with the shoulders and arms; and activities of daily living (bathing, dressing, eating etc).
24% of participants had significant pain (often troubled by pain that was moderate or severe most of the time) and across all four physical abilities looked at, participants with pain had much higher rates of functional limitations than subjects without pain. In the mobility function, of subjects aged 50 to 59 without pain, 37% were able to jog 1 mile and 91% were able to walk several blocks without difficulty. In the subjects with pain, only 9% could jog a mile and only 50% were able to walk several blocks.
The lead author of the study, Dr. Kenneth Covinsky of the Division of Geriatrics at University of California, San Francisco: “We found that the abilities of those aged 50 to 59 with pain were far more comparable to subjects aged 80 to 89 without pain, of whom 4% were able to jog 1 mile and 55% were able to walk several blocks, making pain sufferers appear 20 to 30 years older than non-pain sufferers,” surmised Covinsky. “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.”
It's not unusual for me in my Silver Spring office to see patients who've been ignoring pain for long periods of time. Sometimes years, sometimes decades. While there are few things as satisfying as removing a decade-old pain, it's always striking how long people will tolerate pain. People often convince themselves that it's normal. Sometimes a past doctor who wasn't effective at removing the pain will convince them it's normal. While I of course can't help everyone, if I can't help you I'll do my best to figure out who can. Pain that effects your quality of life is not normal. You deserve to not have pain. The people in your life will be happier to see the pain free version of yourself. You'll make the lives of those closest to you easier. While it's admirable to be able to function under duress, this paper study suggests that long time pain will eventually wear you down and limit your life. If you've questions on any type of pain, on any treatment feel free to call or email one of us.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To examine the relationship between functional limitations and pain across a spectrum of age, ranging from mid life to advanced old age.
DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.
SETTING: The 2004 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a nationally representative study of community-living persons aged 50 and older.
PARTICIPANTS: Eighteen thousand five hundred thirty-one participants in the 2004 HRS.
MEASUREMENTS: Participants who reported that they were often troubled by pain that was moderate or severe most of the time were defined as having significant pain. For each of four functional domains, subjects were classified according to their degree of functional limitation: mobility (able to jog 1 mile, able to walk several blocks, able to walk one block, unable to walk one block), stair climbing (able to climb several flights, able to climb one flight, not able to climb a flight), upper extremity tasks (able to do 3, 2, 1, or 0), and activity of daily living (ADL) function (able to do without difficulty, had difficulty but able to do without help, need help).
RESULTS: Twenty-four percent of participants had significant pain. Across all four domains, participants with pain had much higher rates of functional limitations than subjects without pain. Participants with pain were similar in terms of their degree of functional limitation to participants 2 to 3 decades older. For example, for mobility, of subjects aged 50 to 59 without pain, 37% were able to jog 1 mile, 91% were able to walk several blocks, and 96% were able to walk one block without difficulty. In contrast, of subjects aged 50 to 59 with pain, 9% were able to jog 1 mile, 50% were able to walk several blocks, and 69% were able to walk one block without difficulty. Subjects aged 50 to 59 with pain were similar in terms of mobility limitations to subjects aged 80 to 89 without pain, of whom 4% were able to jog 1 mile, 55% were able to walk several blocks, and 72% were able to walk one block without difficulty. 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 (adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.85, 95% confidence interval (CI)=2.20–3.69, for mobility; AOR=2.84, 95% CI=2.48–3.26, for stair climbing; AOR=3.96, 95% CI=3.43–4.58, for upper extremity tasks; and AOR=4.33; 95% CI=3.71–5.06, for ADL function).
CONCLUSION: Subjects with pain develop the functional limitations classically associated with aging at much earlier ages.
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