Numerical rating scale for self-report of pain intensity in children and adolescents: Recent progress and further questions

Background: Pain and stress of hemodialysis are experienced by more than 50% of patients who are suffering from renal disease; hence decreasing a part of these adverse effects can be effective on individual’s long term coping with hemodialysis. The current study was done to determine the effect of warm footbath with vibration on arteriovenous fistula puncture-related pain in hemodialysis patients.Methods: This clinical trial was conducted on 31 hemodialysis patients in 2014. The patients were selected by simple random sampling method and placed in one group. First, the pain intensity of all patients was measured in the six frequent hemodialysis sessions without any intervention (control method). After two weeks, the intervention of warm footbath with vibration was done on all patients and the pain intensity was measured for six frequent hemodialysis sessions (intervention method). The patients were received 40±2 °C footbath with vibration by foot massage spa machine for ten minutes; then, fistula needles were placed and the pain intensity was assessed by using a numerical rating scale. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and T test.Results: The study group had contained 20 males (64.5%), 11 females (35.5%), with an average age of 44.16±14.85 and a range of 18 to 65 years old, which shows that the pain intensity of the warm footbath with vibration method was lower than the control method (P< 0.05).Conclusions: Warm footbath with vibration can be used as an effective palliative method to reduce pain of hemodialysis patients.

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What is the clinical relevance of the Numerical rating scale for pain?

10.1093/med/9780198834359.003.0059 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Felicia Cox

Keyword(s):

Chronic Pain ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Clinical Importance ◽

Patient Global Impression ◽

Numerical Rating ◽

Group A ◽

Clinically Significant ◽

Global Impression Of Change

The landmark paper discussed in this chapter is ‘Clinical importance of changes in chronic pain intensity measured on an 11-point numerical pain rating scale’, published by Farrar et al. in 2001. The numerical rating scale is now the standard instrument used in chronic pain studies to measure pain intensity. Farrar et al. determined the changes in pain intensity that were clinically significant for studies of chronic pain while measuring the patient’s global impression of change. The paper used pooled data from ten recent studies of pregabalin in 2,724 subjects. The authors reported a consistent relationship between pain intensity and patient global impression of change, regardless of study, disease type, age, sex, study result, or treatment group. A reduction of approximately two points on the numerical rating scale, or of 30% in the global impression of change of pain intensity, represented a clinically important difference.

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Jaw Exercise Therapy and Psychoeducation to Reduce Oral Parafunctional Activities for the Management of Persistent Dentoalveolar Pain

Pain Research and Management ◽

10.1155/2018/5042067 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2018 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

Izumi Makino ◽

Young-Chang Arai ◽

Shuichi Aono ◽

Masayuki Inoue ◽

Hiroki Sakurai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Standard Deviation ◽

Combination Therapy ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

End Of Treatment ◽

Before And After ◽

Numerical Rating ◽

Therapy Treatment ◽

Nonpharmacological Treatments

Objective. To retrospectively analyze the effects of our original combination therapy treatment on patients with nonodontogenic persistent dentoalveolar pain. Methods. Twenty-one patients suffering from persistent dentoalveolar pain (nineteen females and two males; mean age ± standard deviation: 55.7 ± 19.6 years) participated in this study. They were treated with a therapy combination of jaw exercise and psychoeducation to reduce oral parafunctional activities every month. The intensity of pain in these subjects was evaluated using a numerical rating scale (NRS) before and after treatment. Results. The NRSs at the baseline ranged from 5 to 10 (median, 8), from 0 to 10 (median, 2) at one month after treatment, from 0 to 10 (median, 1) at three months after treatment, and from 0 to 10 (median, 0) at the end of treatment. Pain intensity after treatment improved significantly. Conclusion. There was a significant reduction in pain after our combination of therapies as nonpharmacological treatments, and therefore this treatment could be useful in the management of NPDP patients.

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Agreement Between Verbal and Electronic Versions of the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS-11) when Used to Assess Pain Intensity in Adolescents

Clinical Journal of Pain ◽

10.1097/ajp.0000000000000104 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 31 (3) ◽

pp. 229-234 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Elena Castarlenas ◽

Elisabet Sánchez-Rodríguez ◽

Rocío de la Vega ◽

Roman Roset ◽

Jordi Miró

Keyword(s):

Pain Intensity ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating

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On the electronic measurement of pain intensity: Can we use different pain intensity scales interchangeably?

Journal of Health Psychology ◽

10.1177/1359105316633284 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 22 (13) ◽

pp. 1658-1667 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Elisabet Sánchez-Rodríguez ◽

Elena Castarlenas ◽

Rocío de la Vega ◽

Roman Roset ◽

Jordi Miró

Keyword(s):

Visual Analogue Scale ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Analogue Scale ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Pain Scale ◽

Maximum Intensity ◽

Bland Altman Method ◽

Numerical Rating ◽

Electronic Measurement

The objective of this work was to study the agreement between four pain intensity scales when administered electronically: the Numerical Rating Scale-11, the Faces Pain Scale-Revised, the Visual Analogue Scale and the Coloured Analogue Scale. In all, 180 schoolchildren between 12 and 19 years old participated in the study. They had to report the maximum intensity of their most frequent pain using the electronic versions of the four scales. Agreement was calculated using the Bland–Altman method. Results show that the electronic versions of Numerical Rating Scale-11, Coloured Analogue Scale and Visual Analogue Scale can be used interchangeably.

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Effect of Premedication with Anti-inflammatory Drugs on Post-Endodontic Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Brazilian Dental Journal ◽

10.1590/0103-6440201801786 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 29 (3) ◽

pp. 254-260 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Adrian Camargo Amaral Jorge-Araújo ◽

Marcelo Carlos Bortoluzzi ◽

Flares Baratto-Filho ◽

Fábio André Santos ◽

Márcia Thaís Pochapski

Keyword(s):

Pain Intensity ◽

Rescue Medication ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Secondary Outcome ◽

Chi Square ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Numerical Rating ◽

Inflammatory Drugs ◽

Anti Inflammatory

Abstract In spite of advances in root canal therapy and better knowledge of pulpal and periapical inflammation, up 40% of endodontic patients report varying degrees of pain. The aim of this present study was to compare the effect of single preoperative dose of ibuprofen or dexamethasone on post-endodontic pain. Sixty volunteers were divided into three groups (n=20 per group): PL, placebo; IB, 400 mg of ibuprofen; and DE, 8 mg of dexamethasone. The primary outcome was the post-endodontic pain intensity measured with a numerical rating scale (4, 8, 12, 24, and 48 h). Secondary outcomes included number of anesthetic cartridges used and consumption of rescue medication. Data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA, chi-square and Kruskal-Wallis tests. There was no significant difference among groups (p>0.05) considering the pain intensity. Only 37% of IB group patients and 28% of DE group patients used some rescue medication. On the other hand, 74% of PL group patients mentioned the consumption of rescue medication; PL group had a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) in comparison with IB and DE groups. The number of anesthetic cartridges used had no statistically significant difference among the groups (p>0.05). Significant differences were not found in the reduction of pain intensity and the number of anesthetic cartridges used. Considering the consumption of rescue medication (secondary outcome), preoperative administration of Ibuprofen or dexamethasone reduces post-endodontic pain and discomfort in comparison with a placebo. Premedication with anti-inflammatory drugs drugs could be contributed to control of the post-endodontic pain, mainly in patients more sensible for pain.

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Measuring Pain Intensity in Elderly Patients

PSU Medical Journal ◽

10.31584/psumj.2021247735 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 77-81

Author(s):

Sasikaan Nimmaanrat

Keyword(s):

Pain Intensity ◽

Vital Sign ◽

Pain Measurement ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Pain Scale ◽

Measurement Tool ◽

Measurement Tools ◽

Aging Populations ◽

Numerical Rating

Pain intensity is considered as the fifth vital sign. However, it is the only vital sign which is subjective, with there being many pain measurement tools for adults to rate their level of pain. Additionally, there is an increasing number of aging populations throughout the world, and pain measurement in this group of people is challenging as geriatrics have both physical and cognitive impairment. The most frequently utilized pain measurement tools are; the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Verbal Rating Scale (VRS), Numerical Rating Scale (NRS); and faces scales [Faces Pain Scale (FPS) and Faces Pain Scale-Revised (FPS-R) are the faces scales studied most often] tend to be valid for measuring pain severity in cognitively intact elderly. When problems arise, the VAS is the pain measurement tool found to have more difficulties (including higher rates of failure) than the other tools. In elderly with cognitive deficits, fewer difficulties tend to occur as the tools become simpler, with the most valid and useful tools in the following order: the FPS/FPS-R, the VRS, the 0-10 NRS, and the VAS. Furthermore, simpler pain measurement tools tend to be favored over more complicated tools. Keywords: aging; elderly; geriatrics; older; pain measurement; pain measurement tools

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Comparative study of verbal rating scale and numerical rating scale to assess postoperative pain intensity in the post anesthesia care unit

Medicine ◽

10.1097/md.0000000000024314 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 100 (6) ◽

pp. e24314

Author(s):

Ho-Jin Lee ◽

Yongjung Cho ◽

Hyundeok Joo ◽

Jae Yeong Jeon ◽

Young-Eun Jang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Postoperative Pain ◽

Comparative Study ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Verbal Rating Scale ◽

Anesthesia Care ◽

Post Anesthesia Care Unit ◽

Numerical Rating

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Validation of the 5-D Itch Scale in Three Ethnic Groups and Exploring Optimal Cutoff Values Using the Itch Numerical Rating Scale

BioMed Research International ◽

10.1155/2021/7640314 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

H. N. Cheung ◽

Y. S. Chan ◽

N. H. Hsiung

Keyword(s):

Ethnic Groups ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Numerical Rating Scale ◽

Area Under The Curve ◽

Self Report ◽

Operating Characteristics ◽

Cutoff Value ◽

Cutoff Values ◽

Numerical Rating ◽

Chronic Pruritus

Background. Chronic pruritus is a common and distressing condition that has serious emotional and psychosocial consequences. Due to its subjective nature, self-report questionnaires are widely implemented as cost-effective measures to gauge the severity of chronic pruritus. The current study is aimed at validating the 5-D itch scale in three ethnic groups—Black, Asian, and Hispanic—with the well-validated Itch Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) and Worst Itch NRS (WI-NRS) and developing its cutoff value using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) and inspection of the area under the curve (AUC) across ethnic groups. At the same time, it is aimed at comparing the concurrent prevalence of itch and depression in these populations, who often form ethnic minorities in many countries. The current study addresses the knowledge gap of cultural adaptation of the 5-D pruritus scale for greater usage. Methods. Community samples of three ethnic groups were recruited from an online platform of Qualtrics and administered the self-report questionnaires of Itch-NRS, 5-D itch scale, and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) to measure their pruritus domains, itch intensity, depression screening, and its severity. Informed consent was obtained from all participants. Subgroup analysis was conducted, including concurrent validity and cutoff values compared between each ethnic group. Concurrent prevalence of itch and depression was evaluated using the cutoff value of Itch-NRS and PHQ-9. Result. A total of 2323 participants were included in the study. A significant positive correlation ( p < 0.001 ) was found between the Itch-NRS, WI-NRS, and 5-D itch scale. The cutoff value of the 5-D itch scale was established for the three ethnic groups using ROC, with a cutoff value of Itch-NRS as a reference. Conclusions. The 5-D itch scale has demonstrated sound psychometric properties in three ethnic groups and is closely related to Itch-NRS. The analysis of the cutoff value of the 5-D itch scale suggests that different cutoff values should be considered to reduce the inflation of pruritus severity.

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