Pain assessment methods

Inadequate and incomplete pain assessment methods contribute to inadequate pain management. Thus, to gather all the information about pain is very important.

There are multiple methods available depending on:

A. Subjective description

B. Objective description

C. Characteristic of pain

D. Description of pain

There are many components mentioned for “Ideal pain Assessment” like patient quotes, regular assessment, intensity scale, body diagram, patient participation and pharmacological data.

One of the most common pain assessment methods is PQRST

P: Provoking/Palliating Factors :- These are factors which either bring the pain on and what makes it worse, viz: certain positions, movements, activities, specific times of the day or night, and emotions etc. , similarly few pain assessment methods which relieve them.

Q: Quality of Pain :- Patient gives description in his or her own words: Sharp, dull, pulling, crushing, throbbing, burning or pricking.

R: Region of Pain :- Asked to point or name the specific areas of body like large area for diffuse pain or unable to exactly pinpoint the spot.

S: Severity, Signs and Symptoms that Accompany the Pain :- Severity or intensity of pain is assessed by various standardized tools for pain assessment methods .

If you have any question related to your heath fell free to ask a doctor.

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