C. Richard Chapman, Ph.D., Director

Department of Anesthesiology

E-mail: crc20@utah.edu
Address: 615 Arapeen Drive, Suite 200
Phone: 585- 9225

Research Title: Improving the Measurement of Acute  Pain

Research Description:

Research Description: The focus of our project is improving the measurement of acute pain in postoperative and emergency department settings. Currently, the standard for pain assessment is the 11-point numerical rating scale. Analyses of data from multiple clinical domains show that such measures have very low precision. That is, a patient giving a pain rating of 6 might just as well be saying 9 or 3 because the error surrounding the pain rating is high. These measures work in clinical trials with large samples, but they are poorly suited for assessing and tracking pain in the individual patient in clinical settings. We are developing an alternative pain assessment tool based on advanced psychometric methods. If successful, it will produce a tool using pain word descriptors and achieve more precise pain assessment. The tool should facilitate assessment and management of the individual patient. Along with developing an improved tool for pain assessment, our project adva
nces the concept of a pain trajectory. This concept emphasizes the role of time in acute pain and the necessity of quantifying the rate of pain reduction. Having done extensive preliminary work, we are now ready to test a prototype of the new pain measurement tool in postoperative patients and in the Emergency Department. Students participating in this project will have access to existing data for retrospective studies, an opportunity to participate in new data collection, or an opportunity to generate a small spin-off study that tests a focused hypothesis.

Does this research involve human subjects or animals? Yes

If yes, what is the protocol number? 13196

10/2008