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Updated: Oct 10, 2025
Dynamic Quantitative Sensory Testing to Characterize Central Pain Processing
Published on: February 16, 2017
Psychometric validation of the Polish version of the Central Sensitization Inventory in subjects with chronic spinal
Barbara Kosińska1, Beata Tarnacka2, Paweł Turczyn3
1Department of Neurology and Stroke, District Hospital, Chrzanów, Poland.
Background:
Central sensitization is an amplification of neuronal signaling within the central nervous system. The Central Sensitization Inventory was introduced in 2012. A Polish version of the CSI (CSI-Pol) was developed in 2019, but it was not psychometrically validated. The aim of this study was to validate the CSI-Pol in a sample of Polish-speaking patients with chronic spinal pain and compare them with a group of healthy control subjects.
Methods:
The CSI-Pol was administered to 151 patients with chronic spinal pain recruited from two centers. It was re-administered 7 days later. The psychometric properties were then evaluated, including test-retest reliability, construct validity, factor structure and internal consistency. We correlated the CSI-Pol with functional scales, depression and social support scales and compared CSI-Pol scores in the clinical subjects with 30 healthy control subjects recruited from medical staff and their families.
Results:
The CSI-Pol demonstrated excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α =0,933) and test-retest reliability (Intraclass Correlation Coefficients - ICC =0.96), as well as significant positive associations with other patient-reported scales, including the Neck Disability Index (r = 0.593), Revised Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire (r = 0.422), and other measures of functional and depressive states. An exploratory factor analysis resulted in a 4-factor model. CSI-Pol scores in the clinical sample (35.27 ± 17.25) were significantly higher than the control sample (23.3 ± 8.9).
Conclusion:
The results of this study suggest that the CSI-Pol may be a useful clinical tool for assessing central sensitization related symptoms and guiding appropriate treatment in Polish-speaking patients with spinal pain.
