Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Tool to measure acute pain in cats and guide treatment decisions
By Calvo, G et al.·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·2014·School of Veterinary Medicine, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Development of a behaviour-based measurement tool with defined intervention level for assessing acute pain in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of hospitalized cats was assessed for acute pain using a new pain measurement tool developed specifically for felines. Observers rated the cats' pain levels before and after they received pain relief medication. The results showed that the tool effectively measured pain reduction, with significant decreases in pain scores after treatment. This new tool can help veterinarians determine when a cat needs pain relief, making it easier to manage their discomfort during recovery.
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Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To develop a composite measure pain scale tool to assess acute pain in cats and derive an intervention score. METHODS: To develop the prototype composite measure pain scale-feline, words describing painful cats were collected, grouped into behavioural categories and ranked. To assess prototype validity two observers independently assigned composite measure pain scale-feline and numerical rating scale scores to 25 hospitalised cats before and after analgesic treatment. Following interim analysis the prototype was revised (revised composite measure pain scale-feline). To determine intervention score, two observers independently assigned revised composite measure pain scale-feline and numerical rating scale scores to 116 cats. A further observer, a veterinarian, stated whether analgesia was necessary. RESULTS: Mean ± sd decrease in revised composite measure pain scale-feline and numerical rating scale scores following analgesia were 2 · 4 ± 2 · 87 and 1 · 9 ± 2 · 34, respectively (95% confidence interval for mean change in revised composite measure pain scale-feline between 1 · 21 and 3 · 6). Changes in revised composite measure pain scale-feline and numerical rating scale were significantly correlated (r = 0 · 8) (P < 0001). Intervention level score of ≥4/16 was derived for revised composite measure pain scale-feline (26 · 7% misclassification) and ≥3/10 for numerical rating scale (14 · 5% misclassification). CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: A valid instrument with a recommended analgesic intervention level has been developed to assess acute clinical pain in cats that should be readily applicable in practice.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25470416/