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Table 1 Characteristics of study sample N = 41

From: Older adults are mobile too!Identifying the barriers and facilitators to older adults’ use of mHealth for pain management

Age, mean ± sd

76.2 ±9.3

Race/ethnicity status

Non-Hispanic White, n (%)

23 (56.0)

African-American, n (%)

14 (34.0)

Other, n (%)

4 (10.0)

Female, n (%)

32 (78.0)

College level education or higher, n (%)

23 (56.0)

Average pain intensity over past 2 weeks (0–10), mean ± sd

5.0 ±2.6

Pain duration in years, mean ± sd

7.2 ±13.2

Type of pain disorder

Degenerative joint disease, n (%)

21 (51.0)

Low back pain, n (%)

17 (41.0)

Other*

24 (59.0)

Uses medication to manage pain, n (%)

22 (54.0)

Uses physical therapy to manage pain, n (%)

16 (39.0)

Uses other pain management techniques**

22 (54.0)

Days of inactivity due to pain in the past month, mean ± sd

4.8 ±6.6

Current use of technology

Cell phone, n (%)

24 (59.0)

Personal computer, n (%)

17 (41.0)

Internet, n (%)

17 (41.0)

Tablet device, n (%)

7 (17.0)

Smartphone, n (%)

3 (7.0)

  1. * Participants could cite more than one kind of pain problem; other causes of pain included injury, Takayasu arteritis, and orofacial pain.
  2. **Other techniques included interventional therapies, psychological therapies, and alternative medicines.