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katydid

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Hey everyone!
Thought I'd share some information and also see other opinions about this topic. I haven't seen it anywhere else in the forum so I thought I'd bring get it up!

I recently was doing some research, and came across some new information (at least it was new to me) about the McGill pain index /scale that I am sure most of us have had to fill out at a Dr's office in the past.

For those of you that don't know, the McGill pain scale is a widely used pain scale in the medical community. It has been around since the early/mid 70s, and is pretty detailed and informative to Dr's.

On some newer models of the diagram, it is showing fibromyalgia ranks at a score of approximately 30.
Now, I'm sure some of you may not know exactly what the number means, so let me elaborate.....

The pain scale is at a range of 0 - 50 (I believe the long version goes to 78? But none of the charts I've seen have anything above 50 being listed for a rank....)
0 meaning no pain, 50 meaning Excruciating/burning alive/being crushed by the weight of the world/absolute worst pain that you probably can't even fathom...

These are some of the rankings/scores:

Sprain - 13
Fracture - 18
Arthritis - 18
Toothache - 20
Post shingles neuralgia - 21
Non terminal cancer - 24
Chronic back pain - 26
Fibromyalgia - 30
Prepared child birth - 34
Unprepared child birth - 38
Amputation of finger or toe - 40
Rsd/crps - 42

There are a few variations of the scores this was based off of 2 charts I found. And I've actually attached one of the charts I found if you want to have a look, I out can Google it as well!

Have you ever used the McGill pain scale? What are your thoughts on the questionnaire itself? What are your thoughts on the scores and how they compare to each other in your opinion?

Personally, I found it encouraging that some of the newer models are actually ranking fibromyalgia and rsd/crps for the general public to see because showing this chart to my friends and family has been extremely helpful in showing them how my pain compares to some commonly known painful problems! Usually between my description of my pain and then showing them a version of the McGill pain scale, they can finally start to grasp my pain.


Please feel free to add to this! I'd love to see what others think!
 

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Thanks for sharing this, but I must admit the birth bit made me a bit nervous! I had no idea that giving birth was ranking so high, prepared or not prepared! Fibro ranks 30, I really wonder how accurate this scale is? I must be quite frank with you, this is quite new info for me, but seeing this rank helps me understand more about the pain fibro causes. I mean, we all know how can having fibro can be, but I bet many wonder how their pain ranks compared to other diseases.
 
It would have helped if I added that this list is the all inclusive of course. The scores are based on how each patient individually picks words... It help the Dr I two ways, seeing the types of pain a patient has and how they view their pain, and also if the score is around/close to the average score of the listed ailment.
I personally haven't given birth so I have no idea how that feels.
I hope posting this doesn't offend anyone. It's just medical information not my personal opinions about pain. I just wanted to share some new information that I had found about fibromyalgia :)
 
Hi katy-opny, thanks for sharing the scores. I have to show that to my doctor next time I see him. Don't think anyone would be offended by it. I think it's great that you shared it. Unfortunately some of my doctors still don't quite believe in fibro - just because the pain is subjective.. but this scale might at least give them a good understanding of the pain levels.
 
If you Google images of mcgill pain scale and fibromyalgia you find some charts you could print, and maybe some articles that would be informational to your Dr! :)
 
Personally, I think chronic back pain is quite a bit worse than fibro pain. Of course, everyone experiences pain subjectively. I just can't imagine my fibro pain being as bad as my back pain. I'd probably go nuts if that were the case.
 
I personally went through unexpected childbirth at 19 (5 weeks premature and a failed epidural) and expected childbirth at 24 (induced with epidural) and I think the unexpected childbirth pain ranked WAY higher than my Fibro pain. But I also am a high functioning Fibro patient - I can manage with only 1 Ultracet per day and no other medications.

Also, I have worked in the medical field for 17 years but I haven't heard of this pain scale. I've only ever heard of the 0-10 scale. I do believe that printing material to bring with you to a doctor's visit is fantastic advice. There are still a lot of judgemental doctors and staff regarding any type of pain because it is so subjective.
 
Hey thanks for this. It made me a bit nervous for my significant other but good knowledge nonetheless.
 
A lot of different medical scales are available with different features. I think you need to try NTEP Medical Scales which are more accurate and provide you good results as compare to others. Hope it will be helpful for you. !
 
A lot of different medical scales are available with different features. I think you need to try NTEP Medical Scales which are more accurate and provide you good results as compare to others. Hope it will be helpful for you. !

Yesterday i have bought a commercial scales in just 150$ which is good in use.
 
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