The Brief Pain Inventory evaluates the intensity, quality, relief, and interference of pain in cancer patients, and patients’ ideas of the causes of pain. In addition, it can be used to make outcome predictions for advanced cancer patients.
Respondents are asked to use a 0 to 10 numeric scale at. The test consists of 17-items addressing severity, location, chronicity, and amount of relief.
Authors
Department of Neurology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Reliability and Validity
Data collected from a sample of non-cancer patients and cancer patients revealed a coefficient alpha reliability rating of above 0.70. Over short intervals, the BPI showed acceptable test-retest correlations. The BPI was closely compared with the SF-36 Bodily Plan, showing high correlation ratings. The BPI has been translated into 12 languages, including French, Spanish, Hindi, and Chinese.
Obtaining the BPI
(Includes sample forms of both short and long versions)
References
Cleeland, C. S. (1989). Measurement of pain by subjective report. In C. R. Chapman & J. D. Loeser (Eds.), Advances in pain research and therapy: Issues in pain measurement (Vol. 12) (pp. 391-403). New York: Raven Press.
Daut, R., Cleeland, C., & Flanery, R. (1983). Development of the Wisconsin Brief Pain
Questionnaire to assess pain in cancer and other diseases. Pain, 17(2), 197-210.
Hølen, J. C., Lydersen, S., Klepstad, P., Loge, J. H., & Kaasa, S. (2008). The Brief Pain Inventory: Pain’s interference with functions is different in cancer pain compared with noncancer chronic pain. The Clinical Journal of Pain, 24(3), 219-25.
Tan, G., Jensen, M. P., Thornby, J. I., & Shanti, B. F. (2004). Validation of the Brief Pain Inventory for chronic nonmalignant pain. The Journal of Pain 5(2), 133-137.
Tittle, M. B., McMillan, S. C., & Hagan, S. (2003). Validating the Brief Pain Inventory for use with surgical patients with cancer. Oncology Nursing Forum, 30(2), 325-30.
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