Pain and sleeping problems in the elderly

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Brazil is going through changes in the sociodemographic profile leading to changes in epidemiological profile and population aging. Considering the increase of the elderly population with chronic noncommunicable disease, and the identification of chronic pain as a public health problem and its persistence associated with the worsening of the quality of sleep, the objective of this study was to identify the association between self-reported sleeping problems and the intensity of chronic pain. METHODS: A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted with 187 elderly people living in one of the Family Health Unit areas of the municipality and over 60 years old. A sociodemographic characterization instrument was used with one guiding question about sleeping problems (self-reported) and the Multidimensional Pain Evaluation Scale. RESULTS: Pain was described as moderate and intense, with a higher prevalence in the lumbar, iliac and knee regions, being significantly more intense (p=0.028) in the group of elderly people who have sleeping problems. CONCLUSION: The analyzes allowed to observe an association between sleeping problems and the intensity of chronic pain