Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches

Background. Many older adults know about the health benefits of an active lifestyle, but, frequently, pain prevents them from engaging in physical activity. The majority of older adults experience pain, a complex experience that can vary across time and is shaped by sociocultural factors like gender...

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Main Authors: Amy Ho, Maureen C. Ashe, Anita DeLongis, Peter Graf, Karim M. Khan, Christiane A. Hoppmann
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2016-01-01
Series:Pain Research and Management
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1931590
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author Amy Ho
Maureen C. Ashe
Anita DeLongis
Peter Graf
Karim M. Khan
Christiane A. Hoppmann
author_facet Amy Ho
Maureen C. Ashe
Anita DeLongis
Peter Graf
Karim M. Khan
Christiane A. Hoppmann
author_sort Amy Ho
collection DOAJ
description Background. Many older adults know about the health benefits of an active lifestyle, but, frequently, pain prevents them from engaging in physical activity. The majority of older adults experience pain, a complex experience that can vary across time and is shaped by sociocultural factors like gender. Objectives. To describe the time-varying associations between daily pain and physical activity and to explore differences in these associations between women and men. Methods. One hundred and twenty-eight community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and older were asked to report their pain levels three times daily over a 10-day period and wear an accelerometer to objectively capture their daily physical activity (step counts and minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity). Results. Increased daily step counts and minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity were associated with increased daily pain, especially among women. Confirming past literature and contrasting findings for daily pain reports, overall pain levels across the study period were negatively associated with minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity. Conclusions. Findings highlight that pain is significantly associated with physical activity in old age. The nature of this association depends on the time scale that is considered and differs between women and men.
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series Pain Research and Management
spelling doaj-art-3c8742073c55431f94dc5fa703eef8332025-08-20T02:39:08ZengWileyPain Research and Management1203-67651918-15232016-01-01201610.1155/2016/19315901931590Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life ApproachesAmy Ho0Maureen C. Ashe1Anita DeLongis2Peter Graf3Karim M. Khan4Christiane A. Hoppmann5Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaCenter for Hip Health and Mobility, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaCenter for Hip Health and Mobility, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaDepartment of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, CanadaBackground. Many older adults know about the health benefits of an active lifestyle, but, frequently, pain prevents them from engaging in physical activity. The majority of older adults experience pain, a complex experience that can vary across time and is shaped by sociocultural factors like gender. Objectives. To describe the time-varying associations between daily pain and physical activity and to explore differences in these associations between women and men. Methods. One hundred and twenty-eight community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and older were asked to report their pain levels three times daily over a 10-day period and wear an accelerometer to objectively capture their daily physical activity (step counts and minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity). Results. Increased daily step counts and minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity were associated with increased daily pain, especially among women. Confirming past literature and contrasting findings for daily pain reports, overall pain levels across the study period were negatively associated with minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity. Conclusions. Findings highlight that pain is significantly associated with physical activity in old age. The nature of this association depends on the time scale that is considered and differs between women and men.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1931590
spellingShingle Amy Ho
Maureen C. Ashe
Anita DeLongis
Peter Graf
Karim M. Khan
Christiane A. Hoppmann
Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
Pain Research and Management
title Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
title_full Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
title_fullStr Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
title_full_unstemmed Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
title_short Gender Differences in Pain-Physical Activity Linkages among Older Adults: Lessons Learned from Daily Life Approaches
title_sort gender differences in pain physical activity linkages among older adults lessons learned from daily life approaches
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1931590
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