Validation of an Electronic Visual Analog Scale mHealth Tool for Acute Pain Assessment: Prospective Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background Accurate measurement of pain is required to improve its management and in research. The visual analog scale (VAS) on paper format has been shown to be an accurate, valid, reliable, and reproducible way to measure pain intensity. However, some limitations should be considered, some of which can be implemented with the introduction of an electronic VAS version, suitable to be used both in a tablet and a smartphone. Objective This study aimed to validate a new method of recording pain level by comparing the traditional paper VAS with the pain level module on the newly designed Interactive Clinics app. Methods A prospective observational cross-sectional study was designed. The sample consisted of 102 participants aged 18 to 65 years. A Force Dial FDK 20 algometer (Wagner Instruments) was employed to induce mild pressure symptoms on the participants’ thumbs. Pain was measured using a paper VAS (10 cm line) and the app. Results Intermethod reliability estimated by ICC(3,1) was 0.86 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.81 to 0.90, indicating good reliability. Intramethod reliability estimated by ICCa(3,1) was 0.86 with a 95% confidence interval of 0.81 to 0.90, also indicating good reliability. Bland-Altman analysis showed a difference of 0.175 (0.49), and limits of agreement ranged from –0.79 to 1.14. Conclusions The pain level module on the app is highly reliable and interchangeable with the paper VAS version. This tool could potentially help clinicians and researchers precisely assess pain in a simple, economic way with the use of a ubiquitous technology.

Comparison of a Mobile Health Electronic Visual Analog Scale App With a Traditional Paper Visual Analog Scale for Pain Evaluation: Cross-Sectional Observational Study

“…The chosen amount of pressure (kg/cm 2 ) applied to the participant’s thumb was previously successfully used by Escalona-Marfil et al and provides light enough pressure to mimic symptoms of mild pain while not being too extensive as to generate stronger pain or skin damage [ 17 , 21 ]. After application of pressure, the participant was asked to randomly complete either the pVAS ( Figure 2 ) or eVAS ( Figure 3 ).…”

“…The eVAS was accessible via the “Interactive Clinics” app, and all recordings were conducted on a 7-inch (17.8 cm) Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 with Android operating system (v5.1.1), displaying a 13.5-cm straight horizontal line on a white background. When using the eVAS, the tablet was placed horizontally on the table at all times and each participant was asked to place one finger on the line on the screen [ 17 ]. In order to prevent bias, the data collector (AT) wiped the tablet screen completely between measurements to prevent the participant from being able to see the position of the fingerprint previously placed on the tablet’s screen.…”

“…Few of these novel technologies have been examined for reliability and validity among children, adolescents, and adults, with most employing small sample sizes. There is growing evidence to suggest that electronic pain outcome measures are interchangeable with existing traditional pain outcome measures, but more mHealth and eHealth research is needed to test the validity and reliability of the electronic VAS (eVAS) among children and adolescents [ 17 ]. By evaluating the validity of mHealth and eHealth interventions available to patients and clinicians, we can equip AHPs with a more effective tool to measure symptom progression.…”

The Relationship between Quality of Life, Bone Pain, Skin Pruritus and Depression among Patients with Secondary Hyperparathyroidism undergoing Parathyroidectomy: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…We used the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) to measure bone pain. This scale draws a long horizontal line on the paper; one end of the horizontal line is 0, indicating no pain, the other end is 10, indicating severe pain, and the middle region indicates different degrees of bone pain [13]. This method was also used to measure the degree of skin pruritus.…”

A notação logarítmica como opção de registro objetivo da estesiometria: um estudo piloto

“…O uso desses e outros testes físicos na pesquisa em reabilitação prima pela métrica e reprodutividade para gerar inferências sustentadas na precisão e na qualidade dos dados 1,5 . Os dispositivos analógicos, mesmo os validados, usualmente manifestam poder de reprodutividade com maiores desvios que seus paralelos digitais 6,7 , como é o caso do estesiômetro do tipo monofilamentos de Semmes-Weinstein 8 . Em parte, o comprometimento da acurácia dos dados durante a coleta é causado por variabilidade entre avaliadores diferentes ou pela dispersão entre as áreas das secções transversais de um monofilamento para outro, com valores nominais notadamente diferentes 9 .…”