title: Sensation and Distress of Pain Scales: reliability, validity, and sensitivity.
abstract: Psychometric properties of the Sensation and Distress of Pain Visual Analogue Scales (VAS) are compared to dual numerical rating scales (NRS) with data from a randomized controlled trial of postoperative patients. On postoperative days 1 and 2, 15-minute test-retest reliability was .73 to .82 for the VAS and slightly lower for the NRS, r = .72 to .78, while convergent validity of the scales ranged from r = .90 to .92; construct validity of sensation and distress ranged from r = .72 to .85; and discriminant validity was lower, r = .65 to .78. Both instruments were significantly associated with pain reduction following treatment, p < .05 to .01. The VAS scores were significantly lower, p < .01 to .001, and more evenly distributed than NRS scores. It is recommended that the VAS be used in research to produce continuous scores that are more suited to parametric analysis.
authors.affiliation: Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Good
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Stiller
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Zauszniewski
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stanton-Hicks
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Grass
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000451:nursing; D011182:Postoperative Care; D011594:Psychometrics; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D020886:Somatosensory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000451:nursing