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Reliability and validity of the Acceptance Symptom Assessment Scale in assessing labour pain
Ingrid Bergh1, Tina Söderlund, Linda Vinterskog
1School of Life Sciences, University of Skövde, Box 408, SE-541 28 Skövde, Sweden. Ingrid.bergh@his.se
Objective:
to investigate the reliability and validity of the Acceptance Symptom Assessment Scale (ASAS) in assessing labour pain.
Design:
a test-retest approach was used to assess reliability and validity.
Setting:
labour ward with approximately 2,400 deliveries annually in western part of Sweden.
Participants:
forty-seven pregnant women in the latent or active phase of labour.
Methods:
a total of five pain assessments with both the ASAS and the VAS were conducted in three sessions.
Main Outcome Measures:
correlation between ASAS and VAS.
Findings:
both scales demonstrated high and significant test-retest correlations (r=0.83-0.92; p<0.001). High and significant alternative-form reliability correlations (r=0.76-0.93, p<0.001) were found between ASAS and VAS ratings at all five assessments. Construct validity was established when both the ASAS and the VAS identified a pain reduction (p<0.001) 2 hrs after birth, compared to the previous assessment. Over two-thirds of the women preferred the ASAS to the VAS, mainly (n=30) because the ASAS provided more choices relating to the pain experience, making it possible to label pain acceptable/unacceptable.
Conclusions:
the ASAS is interchangeable with the VAS for assessing labour pain. Over two-thirds of the women preferred it to the VAS.
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