Item generation and design testing of a questionnaire to assess degenerative joint disease-associated pain in cats.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the items (question topics) for a subjective instrument to assess degenerative joint disease (DJD)-associated chronic pain in cats and determine the instrument design most appropriate for use by cat owners.


METHODS
100 randomly selected client-owned cats from 6 months to 20 years old.


METHODS
Cats were evaluated to determine degree of radiographic DJD and signs of pain throughout the skeletal system. Two groups were identified: high DJD pain and low DJD pain. Owner-answered questions about activity and signs of pain were compared between the 2 groups to define items relating to chronic DJD pain. Interviews with 45 cat owners were performed to generate items. Fifty-three cat owners who had not been involved in any other part of the study, 19 veterinarians, and 2 statisticians assessed 6 preliminary instrument designs.


RESULTS
22 cats were selected for each group; 19 important items were identified, resulting in 12 potential items for the instrument; and 3 additional items were identified from owner interviews. Owners and veterinarians selected a 5-point descriptive instrument design over 11-point or visual analogue scale formats.


CONCLUSIONS
Behaviors relating to activity were substantially different between healthy cats and cats with signs of DJD-associated pain. Fifteen items were identified as being potentially useful, and the preferred instrument design was identified. This information could be used to construct an owner-based questionnaire to assess feline DJD-associated pain. Once validated, such a questionnaire would assist in evaluating potential analgesic treatments for these patients.
Comparative Pain Research Laboratory & Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of North Carolina, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA.
Helia
H
Zamprogno
Bernie D
BD
Hansen
Howard D
HD
Bondell
Andrea Thomson
AT
Sumrell
Wendy
W
Simpson
Ian D
ID
Robertson
James
J
Brown
Anthony P
AP
Pease
Simon C
SC
Roe
Elizabeth M
EM
Hardie
Simon J
SJ
Wheeler
B Duncan X
BD
Lascelles
D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000502:physiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D002415:Cats; D016208:Databases, Factual; D006801:Humans; D007592:Joint Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D009985:Orthopedics / Q000662:veterinary; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D012016:Reference Values; D012420:Running / Q000502:physiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D018634:Veterinarians; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology