Pressure Ulcer Pain: Assessment and Quantification

Abstract

A cross-sectional study design was used to document perception of pressure ulcer pain in 132 patients in an acute care setting. Subjects were evaluated by means of the Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination, Beck's Depression Inventory, the Faces Pain Rating Scale, and the Visual Analog Scale for pain intensity. Charts were reviewed for demographic data and related medical treatments. The group comprised 44 subjects (33.3%) who were able to respond to the evaluation instruments and 88 subjects (66.7%) who were unable to respond to the evaluation tools. Forty-one percent of the respondents denied pressure ulcer pain and 59% reported pain of some type. According to the Faces Rating Scale, 32% of this group reported no pain and 68% reported some degree of pain. The respondents included 48% who scored below 24 on the Folstein Mini-Mental State Examination, indicative of cognitive impairment, and 52% who were found to be cognitively intact, with scores of 24 or above. Only 2% (n = 3) were given analgesics for pressure ulcer pain within 4 hours of the interview.