Scoping review reveals pain influences alcohol use in older adults, suggesting a feedback loop exists.
BACKGROUND Pain and alcohol use are highly prevalent and frequently co-occur among older adults. An established reciprocal model suggests that pain and alcohol use interact in the manner of a positive feedback loop. However, older adults have been underrepresented in this work. METHODS We conducted a scoping review to answer the following research questions: (a) What is known regarding the effects of alcohol use on pain among older adults? and (b) What is known regarding the effects of pain on alcohol use among older adults? RESULTS A total of 15 studies describing interrelationships between pain and alcohol use among older adults were identified and described in this review. CONCLUSIONS Findings provided convergent evidence that pain can motivate alcohol use in older adults. The effects of alcohol use on longer-term pain outcomes are less clear in this population. Major gaps and directions for future research are described.
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LaRowe et al. (2025) studied this question.
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