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Practical dyspnea assessment: relationship between the 0–10 numerical rating scale and the four-level categorical verbal descriptor scale of dyspnea intensity

Wysham, Nicholas G.; Miriovsky, Benjamin J.; Currow, David C.; Herndon, James E.; Samsa, Gregory P.; Wilcock, Andrew; Abernethy, Amy P.

Practical dyspnea assessment: relationship between the 0–10 numerical rating scale and the four-level categorical verbal descriptor scale of dyspnea intensity Thumbnail


Authors

Nicholas G. Wysham

Benjamin J. Miriovsky

David C. Currow

James E. Herndon

Gregory P. Samsa

Andrew Wilcock

Amy P. Abernethy



Abstract

Context—Measurement of dyspnea is important for clinical care and research.
Objectives—To characterize the relationship between the 0–10 Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) and four-level categorical Verbal Descriptor Scale (VDS) for dyspnea assessment.
Methods—This was a substudy of a double-blind randomized controlled trial comparing palliative oxygen to room air for relief of refractory breathlessness in patients with life-limiting illness. Dyspnea was assessed with both a 0–10 NRS and a four-level categorical VDS over the one-week trial. NRS and VDS responses were analyzed in cross section and longitudinally. Relationships between NRS and VDS responses were portrayed using descriptive statistics and visual representations.
Results—Two hundred twenty-six participants contributed responses. At baseline, mild and moderate levels of breathlessness were reported by 41.9% and 44.6% of participants, respectively. NRS scores demonstrated increasing mean and median levels for increasing VDS intensity, from a mean (SD) of 0.6 (±1.04) for VDS none category to 8.2 (1.4) for VDS severe category. The Spearman correlation coefficient was strong at 0.78 (P < 0.0001). Based on the distribution of NRS scores within VDS categories, we calculated test characteristics of two different cutpoint models. Both models yielded 75% correct translations from NRS to VDS; however, Model A was more sensitive for moderate or greater dyspnea, with fewer misses downcoded.
Conclusion—There is strong correlation between VDS and NRS measures for dyspnea. Proposed practical cutpoints for the relationship between the dyspnea VDS and NRS are 0 for none, 1–4 for mild, 5–8 for moderate, and 9–10 for severe.

Citation

Wysham, N. G., Miriovsky, B. J., Currow, D. C., Herndon, J. E., Samsa, G. P., Wilcock, A., & Abernethy, A. P. (in press). Practical dyspnea assessment: relationship between the 0–10 numerical rating scale and the four-level categorical verbal descriptor scale of dyspnea intensity. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 50(4), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2015.04.015

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Apr 29, 2015
Online Publication Date May 22, 2015
Deposit Date Nov 20, 2017
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Journal of Pain and Symptom Management
Print ISSN 0885-3924
Electronic ISSN 1873-6513
Publisher Elsevier
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 50
Issue 4
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2015.04.015
Keywords Dyspnea; Numerical Rating Scale; Verbal Descriptor Scale
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/751519
Publisher URL http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0885392415002377

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