Cent Eur J Nurs Midw 2015, 6(3):298-305 | DOI: 10.15452/CEJNM.2015.06.0019

The performance of three pain intensity scales and their preferences among Czech women with acute postoperative pain

Petra Mandysová1,*, Zuzana Kadlečková2
1 Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Studies, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic
2 Department of Midwifery and Health and Social Work, Faculty of Health Studies, University of Pardubice, Czech Republic

Aim: The first aim was to compare the performance of three pain intensity scales, the combined Visual Analogue Scale / Numerical Rating Scale (VAS/NRS), NRS, and Faces Pain Scale - Revised (FPS-R), in Czech women in the Obstetrics & Gynaecology Intensive Care Unit. The second aim was to compare the women's overall pain scale preference rankings and preference rankings by education level and age.

Design: The design was cross-sectional.

Methods: Seventy-four women evaluated their acute postoperative pain using the three pain scales and subsequently ranked them according to ease of responding. The data were described and analysed using descriptive statistics and the Spearman rank order correlation coefficient.

Results: Spearman correlations ranged from 0.905 (p < 0.001) between the VAS/NRS and the FPS-R to 0.945 (p < 0.001) between the VAS/NRS and the NRS. As for overall preference, the NRS and the FPS-R were ranked first (n = 32; 43% in both cases).

Conclusion: Correlations across all three scales were high. Therefore, the scales appeared equivalent. Overall, preference rankings of the NRS and FPS-R were comparable and were better than those obtained for the VAS/NRS. Therefore, both scales could be recommended for clinical use in the Czech Republic.

Keywords: pain scale, obstetrics, gynaecology, Faces Pain Scale - Revised, Numerical Rating Scale, Visual Analogue Scale

Received: June 30, 2015; Accepted: July 29, 2015; Published: September 30, 2015  Show citation

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago Chicago Notes IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Mandysová P, Kadlečková Z. The performance of three pain intensity scales and their preferences among Czech women with acute postoperative pain. Central European Journal of Nursing and Midwifery. 2015;6(3):298-305. doi: 10.15452/CEJNM.2015.06.0019.
Share...
Download citation
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Open full article

    References

    1. Abdi W, Amathieu R, Adhoum A, Poncelet C, Slavov V, Kamoun W, Combes X, Dhonneur G. Sparing the larynx during gynaecological laparoscopy: a randomized trial comparing the LMA SupremeTM and the ETT. Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica. 2010;54(2):141-146. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    2. Bourdel N, Alves J, Pickering G, Ramilo I, Roman H, Canis M. Systematic review of endometriosis pain assessment: how to choose a scale? Human Reproduction Update. 2015;21(1):136-152. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    3. Breivik H, Borchgrevink PC, Allen SM, Rosseland LA, Romundstad L, Breivik Hals EK, Kvarstein G, Stubhaug A. Assesment of pain. British Journal of Anaesthesia. 2008;101(1):17-24. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    4. Eom JM, Choi JS, Choi WJ, Kim YH, Lee JH. Does singleport laparoscopic surgery reduce postoperative pain in women with benign gynecologic disease? Journal of Laparoendoscopic & Advanced Surgical Techniques. 2013;23(12):999-1005. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    5. Fauconnier A, Dallongeville E, Huchon C, Ville, Y, Falissard B. Measurement of acute pelvic pain intensity in gynecology. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2009;113(2):260-269. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    6. Gabrhelík T, Pieran M. Léčba pooperační bolesti. Interní medicína. 2012;14(1):23-25. (in Czech)
    7. Guo LL, Li L, Liu YW, Herr K. Evaluation of two observational pain assessment scales during the anaesthesia recovery period in Chinese surgical older adults. Journal of Clinical Nursing. 2015;24:212-221. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    8. Hakl M, Hřib R. Farmakoterapie léčby onkologické bolesti. Medicína pro praxi. 2009;6(Suppl. F):F45-F51. (in Czech)
    9. Herr KA, Spratt K, Mobily PR, Richardson G. Pain intensity assessment in older adults: use of experimental pain to compare psychometric properties and usability of selected pain scales with younger adults. Clinical Journal of Pain. 2004;20(4):207-219. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    10. Hicks CL, von Baeyer CL, Spafford PA, van Korlaar I, Goodenough B. The Faces Pain Scale - Revised: toward a common metric in pediatric pain measurement. Pain. 2001;93:173-183. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    11. Hjermstad MJ, Fayers PM, Haugen DF, Caraceni A, Hanks GF, Loge JH, Fainsinger R, Aass N, Kaasa S. Studies comparing numerical rating scales, verbal rating scales, and visual analogue scales for assessment of pain intensity in adults: A systematic review. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. 2011;41(6):1073-1093. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    12. Hotujec BT, Spencer RJ, Donnelly MJ, Bruggink SM, Rose SL, Al-Niaimi A, Chappell R, Stewart SL, Kushner DM. Transversus abdominis plane block in robotic gynecologic oncology: A randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Gynecologic Oncology. 2015;136:460-465. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    13. Huang KTL, Owino C, Vreeman RC, Hagembe M, Njuguna F, Strother RM, Gramelspacher GP. Assessment of the face validity of two pain scales in Kenya: a validation study using cognitive interviewing. BMC Palliative Care. 2012;11:5. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    14. Chromá J, Sikorová L. Use of specific methods for assessment of pain in children with severe multiple disabilities. Central European Journal of Nursing and Midwifery. 2015;6(2):245-252. Available from: http://periodicals.osu.eu/cejnm/4_72_use-specific-methodsof-assessment-of-pain-in-children-with-severe-multipledisabilities.html Go to original source...
    15. International Association for the Study of Pain. Face Pain Scale - Revised Home. Washington, D.C.: International Association for the Study of Pain; 2014 [cited 2015 Jun 16]. Available from: http://www.iasppain.org/Education/Content.aspx?ItemNumber=1519&navItemNumber=577
    16. Jensen MP, Karoly P. Self-report scales and procedures for assessing pain in adults. In: Turk DC, Melzack R, editors. Handbook of Pain Assessment. New York: The Guilford Press; 2011. p. 19-44.
    17. Kraska-Miller M. Nonparametric statistics for social and behavioral sciences. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group; 2014. Go to original source...
    18. Li L, Herr K, Chen P. Postoperative pain assessment with three intensity scales in Chinese elders. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. 2009;41(3):241-249. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    19. Li L, Liu X, Herr K. Postoperative pain intensity assessment: A comparison of four scales in Chinese adults. Pain Medicine. 2007;8(3):223-234. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    20. Nielsen BN, Henneberg SW, Schmiegelow K, Friis SM, Rømsing J. Peripherally applied opioids for postoperative pain: evidence of an analgesic effect? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica. 2015;59(7):830-845. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    21. Price DD, Patel R, Robinson ME, Staud R. Characteristics of electronic visual analogue and numerical scales for ratings of experimental pain in health subjects and fibromyalgia patients. Pain. 2008;140(1):158-166. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    22. Rosdahl CB, Kowalski M. Textbook of Basic Nursing. 9th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2008.
    23. Roztočil A et al. Moderní gynekologie. 1. vyd. Praha: Grada Publishing, a.s.; 2011. (in Czech)
    24. Štourač P, Kuchařová E, Křikava I, Malý R, Kosinová M, Harazim H et al. Establishment and evaluation of a post caesarean acute pain service in a perinatological center: retrospective observational study. Ceska Gynekologie. 2014;79(5):363-370. Go to PubMed...
    25. Taylor LJ, Herr K. Pain intensity assessment: a comparison of selected pain intensity scales for use in cognitively intact and cognitively impaired African American older adults. Pain Management Nursing. 2003;4:87-95. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...
    26. Van Giang N, Chiu HY, Thai DH, Kuo SY, Tsai PS. Validity, sensitivity, and responsiveness of the 11-face Faces Pain Scale to postoperative pain in adult orthopaedic surgery patients. Pain Management Nursing. 2015 May 8. doi: 10.1016/j.pmn.2015.02.002. [Epub ahead of print]. Go to original source... Go to PubMed...

    This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0), which permits non-comercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original publication is properly cited. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.


    Return to the content