Pain is the most common symptom of physiotherapy patients. In addition to intensity, comprehensive pain assessment should include a description of location, quality, trigger factors, and time and duration. Visual analogue scale (VAS) is often used in clinical practice for self-assessment of pain intensity (PI). The simplest and most common way is to apply one or more printed scales. VAS is a reliable, valid and sensitive measurement instrument for several patient groups, but its metric characteristics depend on scale orientation, verbal descriptors, and the application procedure (including explanation, instructions and the possibility to see previous marks). It is advisable to combine it with other pain assessment methods. To establish a unified general standard for VAS-PI in Slovenia, we suggest that a 10-cm line is used with the descriptors “no pain” at the beginning (on the left side) and “worst pain imaginable” at the end (the right side). We also suggest a standardised explanation and instructions for the patient, as well as the possibility to see the previous marks in case of repeated assessment. The report should express every measurement using the measured value in mm, or the change in PI should be calculated for each individual patient.
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