RESUMO
Due to complex physical and psychological changes in aging, pain measurement and therapeutic treatment of older and geriatric patients present a special challenge. Nevertheless, even for this category of patients, good treatment results are achievable if age-related particulars and problems are consistently heeded and accounted for. That includes adverse sensory and cognitive effects as much as multimorbidity and the polypharmacy that is frequently related to it. An essential prerequisite for adequate pain therapeutic care in elderly patients is consistent pain measurement. While numerical and verbal scales have also proven their usefulness for patients in advanced age who are not cognitively impaired, instruments must be applied for older people with communicative and/or cognitive restrictions with which the observed behavior of those involved can be surveyed in a multidimensional way.
Assuntos
Analgésicos/uso terapêutico , Medição da Dor/métodos , Dor/tratamento farmacológico , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Analgésicos/efeitos adversos , Doença Crônica , Transtornos Cognitivos/psicologia , Comorbidade , Avaliação da Deficiência , Interações Medicamentosas , Humanos , Comunicação não Verbal , Dor/etiologia , Dor/psicologia , Medição da Dor/psicologia , Papel do DoenteRESUMO
State-of-the-art decubitus prevention focuses mainly on special decubitus mattresses, which are indicated for extremely high risk only, while other risk factors such as nutrition or physical activity are hardly considered. Therefore, a monitoring system for decubitus prevention for persons with medium risk has been developed. The system consisted of an unobtrusive sensor system and a tablet for manual input of decubitus-relevant data concerning nutrition, drinking behavior and physical activity. The system was tested in a feasibility study. Results indicate that the system is usable and can provide useful information for decubitus prevention. Future work will include a field study, evaluating the system in a long-term study.