FIGURE 1.

Pain perception and experience in the elderly. The pain perception in the elderly is complex, with biopsychosocial factors associated. The older individuals present opposite sensitivity for heat and mechanically evoked pain. This population apparently tolerates acute pain (postoperative and cancer pain, peritonitis), when compared with persistent pain states. For chronic pain diagnosis in the elderly, health professionals should consider that older adults demonstrate particularities such as superior pain acceptance and self-efficacy, with less catastrophizing levels. However, the elderly has altered peripheral and central sensitization combined with higher levels of anxiety, depression, and insomnia. Social support from a family member or a caregiver, distraction, sedentary life, and dementia can influence the pain experience of older people, leading to changes in pain unpleasantness.