Chronic Pain and Opioids in the Elderly: Treating the Brain, Not Just the Body
Pain management in older adults may benefit from moving beyond symptom-focused approaches toward a neuropsychiatric model of care aimed at preserving homeostatic balance across sensory, emotional, and motivational domains. Within this framework, opioid therapy can be conceptualised as a potential means of functional and neuroaffective restoration, rather than solely as a strategy for risk reduction.
Authors
- Angelo Giovanni Icro Maremmani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7728-3705)
- Alessandro Bellini
- Filippo Della Rocca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7935-3524)
- Manuel Glauco Carbone (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7457-6008)
- Claudia Tagliarini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5599-045X)
- Giulia Gastaldello
- Rossella Miccichè
- Roberta Rizzato
- Luca Mazzetto
- Icro Maremmani
Institutions
- University of Pisa (IT)
- University of Insubria (IT)
- Saint Camillus International University of Health and Medical Sciences (IT)
- CTO Andrea Alesini (IT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
- Published
- 2026-02-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph23030285
- Primary Topic
- Pain Management and Opioid Use
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00