Translation to Portuguese and validation of the Douleur Neuropathique 4 questionnaire.
The Douleur Neuropathique 4 (DN4) questionnaire was developed by the French Neuropathic Pain Group and is a simple and objective tool, with the ability to distinguish nociceptive from neuropathic pain. The purpose of this work was to validate the DN4 questionnaire in the Portuguese language in order to allow its use in clinical and research settings. A double-blind, accuracy study was conducted, consisting of translation, back-translation, literal evaluation, semantic equivalence, and communication with the target population. The Portuguese version of the questionnaire was applied in a sample of 101 patients with neuropathic (N = 42) or nociceptive pain (N = 59), ranked according to medical diagnosis. The reproducibility, reliability and validity of the instrument were analyzed, and showed a high diagnostic power for this version of the DN4 questionnaire. The Portuguese version of the DN4 questionnaire presented good validity and reliability, allowing it to identify neuropathic pain and neuropathic characteristics of mixed pain syndromes.


CONCLUSIONS
This article presents the first validated neuropathic pain questionnaire in the Portuguese language and represents a useful tool in the assessment of neuropathic pain both in the clinical setting and in population-based studies. The sensible and quick format of this instrument are key factors that will contribute to its widespread use, permitting a true recognition of patients with neuropathic pain.
Santos
Jamile G
JG
Neuromusculoskeletal Dynamics Research Group, Bahian Foundation for Science Development, Bahian Medical and Public Health School, Salvador, BA, Brazil.
Brito
Jacilene O
JO
de Andrade
Daniel C
DC
Kaziyama
Viviane M
VM
Ferreira
Karine A
KA
Souza
Israel
I
Teixeira
Manoel J
MJ
Bouhassira
Didier
D
Baptista
Abrahão F
AF
D001938:Brazil; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis*; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000379:methods*; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014175:Translating