Objectives: To develop a measure of treatment satisfaction assessing attributes specific to injected interferon-beta-1a (IFN-beta-1a) for multiple sclerosis (MS), and to test pain and instrument sensitivity to change among patients changing injection devices.
Materials and methods: The MS Treatment Concerns Questionnaire (MSTCQ) was developed and tested with pain assessments before and 3 months after patients changed devices from Rebiject to Rebiject II.
Results: The MSTCQ was organized with two domains: Injection System Satisfaction and Side Effects (three subscales: Injection Site Reactions, Global Satisfaction, and Flu-Like Symptoms). Significant improvements (P = 0.002 to P < 0.001) occurred with the new injection device in all MSTCQ subscales (except Flu-Like Symptoms), and all pain measures (P < 0.0001). Clinically meaningful improvement was demonstrated in all scales, except Flu-Like Symptoms, by effect sizes (0.23-0.59).
Conclusions: These statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in MSTCQ and pain measures show the value of technologically advanced devices in domains of concern to patients.