Posted: Jun 20, 2010 9:10 pm
DST70 wrote:Shrunk wrote:
It's very easily done. You use a standardized self-rating scale for pain. The rating is subjective, but so long as the conditions of the trial are well-controlled that doesn't matter. Improvement, or not, in pain control can still be determined.
But would the conditions of most well controlled trials allow for different types of pain - sharp, burning, electric, dull, chronic, intermittent, stinging? Worse for sitting; or being near electrical equipment; or near the sea? I'm labouring the point a bit, but you can see where this is going. Study design means decisions get made about confounding variables.
Adding on to it
Pain-appears gradually and disappears gradually, appears gradually but disappears suddenly, appears suddenly and disappears gradually, appears suddenly and disappears suddenly, directions of pain-backward, downward, forward, outward, extending to-, on left side, on right side, radiating, etc