Aging clinical and experimental research
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Although pain in the elderly is a common and important problem, it is frequently underestimated and undertreated. Pain assessment in elderly people is often more difficult than in the general population, because of the occurrence of dementia and other cognitive impairments that may compromise the ability to communicate the presence and the intensity of pain to hospital staff. Recently, several observational tools have been developed in order to assess pain behaviors in non-communicative patients. The aim of the present study was to verify if the Italian version of the Non- Communicative Patient's Pain Assessment Instrument (NOPPAIN) could be used in a hospital setting. ⋯ The preliminary data of the present study support the reliability and validity of the Italian version of the NOPPAIN, which appears to be an easy-to-use tool in the assessment of pain in hospitalized non-communicative patients.