abstract
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EXCERPT
More than 75 million American adults report a problem with persistent pain (National Center for Health Statistics, 2006). Older adults are particularly at risk, with more than 50% reporting painful musculoskeletal conditions, such as arthritis, back pain, fractures caused by osteoporosis, and fibromyalgia (Chu, Schnelle, Cadogan, & Simmons, 2004; Fries, Simon, Morris, Flodstrom, & Bookstein, 2001; Leveille, 2004; Sha et al., 2005). Currently, 45 million Americans have arthritis or an arthritis-related condition (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2006), but by 2030, this number is expected to increase to 67 million (Hootman & Helmick, 2006). The costs associated with persistent pain in the United States have been estimated to be more than $100 billion (National Institutes of Health [NIH], 1998).