title: Reliability and validity of individual and composite recall pain measures in patients with cancer.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate and compare the validity and reliability of individual and composite recall pain intensity measures.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary analyses using data from a published 14-day open-label crossover clinical trial comparing two active treatments.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multiple settings.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-two adults with a history of chronic cancer pain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Recall ratings of least, worst, and average pain during the past 2 days; composite score representing recalled characteristic pain in the past 2 days; and daily diary ratings of pain intensity from which "actual" least, worst, and average pain scores were derived.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Recall ratings of least and average pain, and a composite score representing recalled characteristic pain were accurate (differed no more than three points from "actual" scores on a 0-100 scale). Although the recall rating of worst pain significantly (P < 0.05) overestimated actual worst pain, the differences were minor (i.e., seven to eight points on a 0-100 scale). All of the recall measures demonstrated validity via their strong associations with the measures of actual pain intensity. The recall measures also demonstrated excellent test-retest stability, although the diary-derived measures tended to be more stable than the recall measures did. The composite measure of recalled characteristic pain demonstrated a high level of internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.90).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Individual recall ratings and a composite score representing recalled characteristic pain intensity are reliable and valid measures of actual pain in patients with cancer. The findings support their use as outcome measures in clinical trials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Harborview Medical Center, 325 Ninth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104, USA. mjensen@uw.edu
authors.forename: Mark P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Jensen
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Susan L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Potts
authors.forename: Errol M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Gould
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000701:Analgesics, Opioid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D010146:Pain / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D010147:Pain Measurement; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
chemical_list: D000701:Analgesics, Opioid