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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore pain prevalence, experiences, and self-care
management strategies among community-dwelling elderly in Taiwan. A convenience sample
of elderly persons (n=1054) was recruited from outpatient clinics of two hospitals
in northern Taiwan. Participants' pain prevalence was 50.0%, and the average number
of pain sites was 3.9 (standard deviation [SD]=5.8). Knees were the most commonly
described pain site, but the most painful site was the spinal cord area. The mean
pain intensity was 3.1 (SD=1.8) and pain interference was 2.8 (SD=2.1). Most participants
took prescribed medications to deal with pain; doctors were the main information source
for this self-care strategy. Although participants reported using various self-care
pain management strategies, most still reported moderate-to-severe worst pain. Moreover,
our participants identified far fewer self-care strategies than U.S. elders with chronic
pain. These findings suggest that community-dwelling elders in Taiwan know little
about managing pain symptoms or ascribe a different meaning to pain than their U.S.
counterparts. Because health care providers play an important role in helping the
elderly to manage pain, the authors recommend training health care providers about
Taiwanese elders' perceptions of pain, to perform regular pain assessments, and provide
current knowledge about pain assessment and pain management strategies.