# Biopsychosocial pain predictors of mobility decline in aging

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA · 2023 · $68,557

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract. Mobility disability impacts approximately 30% of individuals aged 60-69, 40% of
individuals aged 70-79, and 55% of individuals age 80 or older. Emerging cross-sectional evidence suggests that
self-reported musculoskeletal pain may be one of the major drivers of age-related mobility decline. Despite this
evidence, significant knowledge gaps remain because the relationships among chronic musculoskeletal pain,
aging, mobility, psychosocial function, and the brain have not been studied longitudinally in the same older
individuals. Our prospective study design will provide novel information on the role of pain-related brain changes
as predictive factors of age-related mobility decline. The proposed work will allow us to determine whether pain as
well as brain structure and function predict mobility decline longitudinally (Aim 1) and whether brain measures
mediate the pain-mobility association prospectively (Aim 2). Findings may support the value of incorporating pain’s
impact on the brain into treatments that target mobility decline in aging. The proposed work integrates multiple
fields of study within a biopsychosocial approach to study pain and mobility in the older population.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10833763
- **Project number:** 3R01AG076082-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** Stephen Coombes
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $68,557
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2022-06-01 → 2027-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10833763

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10833763, Biopsychosocial pain predictors of mobility decline in aging (3R01AG076082-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10833763. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*