Pain Management and Behavioral Outcomes in Patients With Dementia

• Status: Completed
• Trial end date: 2001-03-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

Dementia illness often co-exists with painful medical conditions associated with aging (e.g., degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis, skin ulcers, back pain, headaches, cancer, or angina). While the standard practice is pain assessment for all patients, the elderly with dementia have special needs for assessment, management, and evaluation. When they are unable to verbalize pain, objective measurement of their discomfort are possible manifestations of pain. No research relates systemic pain treatment with reduction of negative problematic behaviors in patient dementia.

• Phase: Phase 2
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: No

Details

• Lead Sponsor: US Department of Veterans Affairs; VA Office of Research and Development
• Treatments: Acetaminophen

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

Patients must be: 55 years old and older, nursing home residents, a diagnosed painful that would respond to tylenol, documented agitated behavior, a dementia diagnosis or a functional impairment severe enough to rate a 7 on the Global Deterioration Scale, be unable to report pain. Patients must have been residents in the nursing home for at least 1 month with a plan to stay at least 2 months.

Exclusion Criteria: