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A visual analogue thermometer for measuring pain intensity

M Choinière¹, R Amsel

¹Burn Centre, Hotel-Dieu Hospital of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Journal of Pain and Symptom Management

|May 1, 1996

Summary

A new visual analogue thermometer (VAT) effectively measures pain intensity, proving valid and useful in clinical settings. This pain measurement tool offers comparable results to the visual analogue scale (VAS) and is preferred by many patients.

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Area of Science:

Pain measurement
Psychometrics
Clinical assessment tools

Background:

Conventional visual analogue scale (VAS) has limitations in pain intensity measurement.
Need for a more effective and user-friendly pain assessment instrument.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop and validate a new instrument, the visual analogue thermometer (VAT), for measuring pain intensity.
To compare the VAT's validity and utility against established pain measurement scales.

Main Methods:

Two studies were conducted with chronic pain patients and healthy volunteers.
Pain intensity was rated using VAT, VAS, McGill Pain Questionnaire, and a numerical scale (NUM).
Concurrent and construct validity of the VAT were assessed.

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Main Results:

The VAT demonstrated concurrent and construct validity for pain measurement.
VAT and VAS showed comparable sensitivity and pain estimates.
The numerical scale (NUM) tended to yield higher pain ratings.
Participants showed a preference for the VAT over the VAS.

Conclusions:

The visual analogue thermometer (VAT) is a valid, accurate, and clinically useful tool for pain intensity measurement.
The VAT is suitable for clinical use and as an outcome measure in clinical trials.
The study highlights potential inequities in perceived differences between pain descriptors across scales.