The Functional Assessment Screening Questionnaire: application for evaluating pain-related disability

Area of Science:

• Pain Management
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Chronic pain significantly impacts daily functioning and quality of life.
• Accurate disability assessment is crucial for effective pain management strategies.
• Existing assessment tools may not fully capture the multifaceted nature of chronic pain disability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability and validity of the Functional Assessment Screening Questionnaire (FASQ) for assessing disability in chronic pain patients.
• To explore the relationship between FASQ scores and other measures of disability and psychological factors.
• To determine the internal structure of the FASQ within a chronic pain population.

Main Methods:

• The Functional Assessment Screening Questionnaire (FASQ), a 15-item checklist, was administered to 158 chronic pain patients.
• Reliability was assessed using split-half and alternate-form methods.
• Responses were analyzed for relationships with employment status, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) scores, and pain complaint site.

Main Results:

• The FASQ demonstrated good reliability and an internal structure suitable for chronic pain populations, with two factors: physical-motoric and cognitive-social disability.
• Employed patients scored significantly differently than unemployed patients.
• Patients with back pain reported the highest disability levels, while those with head or genital pain reported the lowest.
• MMPI Scale 1 (Hs) was the most predictive of reported impairment.

Conclusions:

• The FASQ is a reliable and potentially useful tool for evaluating disability associated with chronic pain in primary care settings.
• The questionnaire captures distinct physical-motoric and cognitive-social dimensions of disability.
• FASQ scores vary significantly by pain location and employment status, providing valuable clinical insights.