Psychometric Validity and Reliability of the Thai Version of the Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate validity and reliability of the Thai version of the Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory (NPSI-T) in Thai patients with neuropathic pain. Although the Thai version of Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory (NPSI-T) has been linguistically validated, the tool has to be psychometrically validated before applying to neuropathic pain patients in daily practice. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Forty Thai patients with diagnosis of neuropathic pain were enrolled to the study and were evaluated by visual analog scale (VAS), the Thai version of Neuropathic Pain Diagnostic Questionnaire (DN4-T) and NPSI-T questionnaires. Four hours later the patients were asked to perform retest NPSI-T and to evaluate the understanding of each NPSI-T question. RESULTS: The total score of NPSI-T questionnaire was statistically correlated to visual analog scale (VAS) (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.599, p < 0.001) and neuropathic pain diagnostic questionnaire (DN4-T) (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.695, p < 0.001). The reliability was determined by Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), an excellent interobserver agreement (ICC > 0.8) and good agreement (ICC 0.6-0.8) were presented in 30% and 70% of the questionnaire, respectively. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrated validity and reliability of the NPSI-T for assessing the neuropathic pain in Thai patients.

Effective Pain Management for Inpatients at Siriraj Hospital: A Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of severe cancer and non-cancer pain among in patients has been reported at rates ranging from 15% to 36%. We examined the effectiveness of the pain management provided to inpatients by the Siriraj Pain Clinic. MATERIAL AND METHOD: A retrospective chart review was conducted among inpatients who had consulted the clinic between January 2013 and December 2014. Patients with a numeric pain rating scale (NRS) 4 on the day of consultation, those discharged within seven days, and postoperative patients were excluded. Successful pain control was defined as NRS ≤ 4 within seven days of the initial consultation. RESULTS: We identified 352 eligible patients, of which 231 (65.4%) had cancer pain. Only 42.6% achieved successful pain control. An absence of psychological problems (odds ratio (OR) 2.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-4.2; p = 0.010); an initial NRS < 7 (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.2-3.0; p = 0.008); the use of either a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or a Coxibs (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.3-3.9; p = 0.017), and abdominal pain (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.5-4.7; p =0.008) were factors associated with successful pain control. CONCLUSION: Adequate pain control was achieved in less than half of the inpatients in our institution. Psychological disturbance and severe pain predicted unsatisfactory pain control.