Self-rated measure of pain frequency, intensity, and burden: psychometric properties of a new instrument for the assessment of pain.

Background: A brief, self-administered measurement of pain frequency, intensity, and burden is desirable in both research and clinical settings. We describe the development and initial psychometric properties of a new instrument, the Pain Frequency, Intensity, and Burden Scale (P-FIBS).

Methods: The P-FIBS was administered to all participants (N = 302) with psychostimulant use disorders in the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network's STRIDE (Stimulant Reduction Intervention using Dose Exercise) multisite trial.

Results: The four items on the P-FIBS demonstrate high item-total correlations (range 0.70-0.85) with a high Cronbach's alpha (0.90). The P-FIBS demonstrated a strong negative correlation with the bodily pain sub-score of the Short Form Health Survey (r = -0.76, p < 0.0001) and did not correlate with a measure of cocaine (r = 0.09, p = 0.12) or methamphetamine (r = -0.06, p = 0.33) craving.

Conclusions: The P-FIBS demonstrates good psychometric properties. This brief measure can be used to assess pain in research settings or as a screen in clinical settings. Further research is needed to assess the measure's sensitivity to change with treatment.