Treating the Most Vulnerable: A Discursive Review of Experimental Pain in Alzheimer's Disease

Overview

Journal Nurs Open

Specialty Nursing

Date 2021 Jun 24

PMID 34165251

Citations 1

Authors

Wm Larkin Iversen

Ronald L Cowan

Sebastian Atalla

Sydney S Englehart

Tanya R Gure

Karen O Moss

Claire M Ryan

Douglas W Scharre

Kathy D Wright

Todd B Monroe

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Aim: The purpose of this manuscript is to summarize research on how experimental pain is experienced by adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and to translate results into implications for nurses.

Design: This discursive review synthesizes the results of three previous research studies exploring experimental pain in adults with AD.

Methods: Using a series of fictional clinical vignettes, the authors discuss how the results from three previous papers using acute experimental pain can potentially be translated into clinical practice. The authors also introduce the reader to the concept of research-related psychophysics using introductory definitions and concepts with the impetus to encourage other nurses to consider this research methodology.

Results: Pain characteristics in AD that differ from cognitively intact controls must be explored to properly address pain in this population. Nurses are well positioned to address these issues in order to provide a high quality of care to adults with AD.

Citing Articles

Treating the most vulnerable: A discursive review of experimental pain in Alzheimer's disease.

Iversen W, Cowan R, Atalla S, Englehart S, Gure T, Moss K Nurs Open. 2021; 9(2):942-949.

PMID: 34165251 PMC: 8859087. DOI: 10.1002/nop2.922.

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