PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Does it hurt?

A cautionary note on the use of perceived pain scores in health outcomes research

2011-01-11
(Press-News.org) It is well known that pain is a highly subjective experience. We each have a pain threshold, but this can vary depending on distractions and mood. A paper in the International Journal of Behavioural and Healthcare Research offers a cautionary note on measuring perceived pain in research.

There are many chronic illnesses and injuries that have no well-defined symptoms other than pain, but because of the subjectivity in a patient's reporting of their experience of the illness or injury, healthcare workers have difficulty in addressing the patient's needs. Moreover, when subjective reporting of pain is a critical component of a clinical trial, researchers involved in the trial often find it difficult to determine efficacy from patient to patient based on the subject's own evaluation of painful symptoms. Commonly, patients are asked to rate their pain on a zero to ten scale, where zero represents no pain whatsoever and a value of ten indicates excruciating pain. Unfortunately, one person's "8" may be another's "10" on the same scale.

When seeking to assess the effectiveness of an intervention it is common practice that patients whose post-treatment pain scores are lower than their pre-treatment scores are categorized as having undergone effective treatment. This all but ignores the subjectivity of their experience of pain, where the simple act of being "treated" may lower their perception of their pain without the underlying cause of the pain having been physically reduced.

Now, Sean Murphy of Washington State University, in Spokane, Washington, USA, and colleagues have USA, have borrowed economics theory to compare the conventional binary "pain no-pain" measure of treatment success commonly used in practice and in clinical trials with a new approach to modeling pain that allows for more "fuzzy" reporting of pain by precluding certain aspects of bias inherent in such a subjective assessment. They have then investigated how common is misclassification and how it can influence outcomes.

Their findings suggest that the chance that a typical patient misclassifies their perceived pain ranges from about 3 percent (for patients who mistakenly think they do not improve, but actually do) to about 14 percent (for patients who think they improve, but actually do not improve). As such, health outcomes researchers, practitioners and policy makers must use caution when relying solely on self-reported pain reductions as a gauge of therapy effectiveness. The team points out that their exploratory research requires follow-up work to further confirm the findings.

INFORMATION:

"A cautionary note on the use of perceived pain scores in health outcomes research" in Int. J. Behavioural and Healthcare Research, 2010, 2, 123-135

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

New method takes snapshots of proteins as they fold

New method takes snapshots of proteins as they fold
2011-01-11
People have only 20,000 to 30,000 genes (the number is hotly contested), but they use those genes to make more than 2 million proteins. It's the protein molecules that domost of the work in the human cell. After all, the word protein comes from the Greek prota, meaning "of primary importance." Proteins are created as chains of amino acids, and these chains of usually fold spontaneously into what is called their "native form" in milliseconds or a few seconds. A protein's function depends sensitively on its shape. For example, enzymes and the molecules they alter are ...

Universities miss chance to identify depressed students

2011-01-11
CHICAGO --- One out of every four or five students who visits a university health center for a routine cold or sore throat turns out to be depressed, but most centers miss the opportunity to identify these students because they don't screen for depression, according to new Northwestern Medicine research. About 2 to 3 percent of these depressed students have had suicidal thoughts or are considering suicide, the study found. "Depression screening is easy to do, we know it works, and it can save lives," said Michael Fleming, professor of family and community medicine ...

'Hot-bunking' bacterium recycles iron to boost ocean metabolism

2011-01-11
In the vast ocean where an essential nutrient—iron—is scarce, a marine bacterium that launches the ocean food web survives by using a remarkable biochemical trick: It recycles iron. By day, it uses iron in enzymes for photosynthesis to make carbohydrates; then by night, it appears to reuse the same iron in different enzymes to produce organic nitrogen for proteins. The bacterium, Crocosphaera watsonii, is one of the few marine microbes that can convert nitrogen gas into organic nitrogen, which (just as it does on land) acts as fertilizer to stimulate plant growth in ...

Men with macho faces attractive to fertile women, researchers find

2011-01-11
When their romantic partners are not quintessentially masculine, women in their fertile phase are more likely to fantasize about masculine-looking men than are women paired with George Clooney types. But women with masculine-looking partners do not necessarily become more attracted to their partners, a recent study co-authored by a University of Colorado at Boulder researcher concludes. Meanwhile, a man's intelligence has no effect on the extent to which fertile, female partners fantasize about others, the researchers found. They say the lack of an observed "fertility ...

GEN reports on biotech acquisition deals in 2010 that topped $1 billion

2011-01-11
New Rochelle, NY, January 10, 2011—The mega-mergers of 2009 did not continue into 2010. While the three biggest acquisitions in 2009 each had a price tag of more than $40 billion, only last year's top purchase got above that mark, according to an evaluation of reported deals conducted by Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN) (http://www.genengnews.com/). The only other mega takeover for the year, sanofi-aventis' move to buy Genzyme, is still being worked out. A look at 2010's buyouts that crossed the $1billion mark (http://www.genengnews.com/gen-news-highlights/acquisition-deals-in-2010-that-topped-1b/81244443/) ...

Abstinence, heavy drinking, binge drinking associated with increased risk of cognitive impairment

2011-01-11
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, January 10, 2011 -- Previous research regarding the association between alcohol consumption and dementia or cognitive impairment in later life suggests that mild to moderate alcohol consumption might be protective of dementia. However, most of the research has been conducted on subjects already rather elderly at the start of the follow-up. A new study published in the December issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease addresses this problem with a follow-up of more than two decades. The study, conducted at the University of Turku, University ...

Nuclear receptors reveal possible interventions for cancer, obesity

Nuclear receptors reveal possible interventions for cancer, obesity
2011-01-11
HOUSTON, Jan. 10, 2011 – Research with significant implications in the treatment and intervention of cancer and obesity has been published recently in two prestigious journals by University of Houston (UH) biochemist Dr. Jan-Åke Gustafsson. In an invited review in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the most-cited biomedical research journal in the world, Gustafsson and his team summarize the most recent results pertaining to the function of a nuclear receptor called estrogen receptor beta, or ERbeta, the biological and medical importance of which Gustafsson and his ...

CT helps identify bullet trajectories

2011-01-11
OAK BROOK, Ill. – Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) provides an efficient, effective way to analyze wounds from bullets and explosive devices, according to a study published online and in the March issue of Radiology. "The information provided by MDCT has the potential to improve patient care and aid in both military and civilian forensic investigations," said the study's lead author, Les R. Folio, D.O., M.P.H., from the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Md. U.S. troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan face threats from increased sniper activity and ...

Shellfish safer to eat thanks to breakthrough by Queen's scientists

2011-01-11
New technology to make shellfish safer to eat has been pioneered by scientists at Queen's University Belfast. The new test, developed at Queen's Institute for Agri-Food and Land Use, not only ensures shellfish are free of toxins before they reach the food chain but is likely to revolutionise the global fishing industry. While the current process for monitoring potentially dangerous toxins in shellfish takes up to two days, the new test slashes the testing time to just 30 minutes using new biosensor technology and provides a much more reliable result. The test detects ...

A Resolution You Can Keep -- Bay Area Hypnotherapy of San Francisco Challenges You to Succeed in 2011

2011-01-11
Jim and Lynn Swearingen, Co-Founders of Bay Area Hypnotherapy in San Francisco, want to give you a resolution you can keep! "During the months of January and February", said Lynn, "we are offering a $65 coupon for your first Hypnotherapy session, good toward any goal you wish to achieve. This is a whopping $30 off our usual price for an individual session. We're passing this savings on to you because we want everyone to discover what a powerful part their subconscious plays in directing their lives. We can teach you how to use self-hypnosis to achieve lasting change and, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Study unexpectedly finds living in rural, rather than urban environments in first five years of life could be a risk factor for developing type 1 diabetes

Editorial urges deeper focus on heart-lung interactions in pulmonary vascular disease

Five University of Tennessee faculty receive Fulbright Awards

5 advances to protect water sources, availability

OU Scholar awarded Fulbright for Soviet cinema research

Brain might become target of new type 1 diabetes treatments

‘Shore Wars:’ New research aims to resolve coastal conflict between oysters and mangroves, aiding restoration efforts

Why do symptoms linger in some people after an infection? A conversation on post-acute infection syndromes

Study reveals hidden drivers of asthma flare-ups in children

Physicists decode mysterious membrane behavior

New insights about brain receptor may pave way for next-gen mental health drugs

Melanoma ‘sat-nav’ discovery could help curb metastasis

When immune commanders misfire: new insights into rheumatoid arthritis inflammation

SFU researchers develop a new tool that brings blender-like lighting control to any photograph

Pups in tow, Yellowstone-area wolves trek long distances to stay near prey

AI breakthrough unlocks 'new' materials to replace lithium-ion batteries

Making molecules make sense: A regional explanation method reveals structure–property relationships

Partisan hostility, not just policy, drives U.S. protests

The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: August 1, 2025

Young human blood serum factors show potential to rejuvenate skin through bone marrow

Large language models reshape the future of task planning

Narrower coverage of MS drugs tied to higher relapse risk

Researchers harness AI-powered protein design to enhance T-cell based immunotherapies

Smartphone engagement during school hours among US youths

Online reviews of health care facilities

MS may begin far earlier than previously thought

New AI tool learns to read medical images with far less data

Announcing XPRIZE Healthspan as Tier 5 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Announcing Immortal Dragons as Tier 4 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Reporting guideline for chatbot health advice studies

[Press-News.org] Does it hurt?
A cautionary note on the use of perceived pain scores in health outcomes research