The Brazilian-Portuguese versions of the McGill Pain Questionnaire were reproducible, valid, and responsive in patients with musculoskeletal pain

Abstract

Objective: To cross-culturally adapt the Short Form of the McGill Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ) into Brazilian-Portuguese and test the clinimetric properties of the newly developed SF-MPQ and the previously cross-culturally adapted Brazilian-Portuguese Long Form of the McGill Pain Questionnaire (LF-MPQ).

Study design and setting: The SF-MPQ was translated and adapted into Brazilian-Portuguese following recommendations from current guidelines. Both SF-MPQ and LF-MPQ were administered in a prospective longitudinal design to 203 patients with a range of musculoskeletal conditions to evaluate their clinimetric properties.

Results: Both questionnaires demonstrated high levels of internal consistency (Cronbach α range=0.70-0.79), reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient(2,1) range=0.69-0.85), and agreement (standard error of the measurement range=0.80-6.92). We observed positive and moderate-to-high correlations among the SF-MPQ, the LF-MPQ, and the Numerical Rating Scale (Pearson r ranging from 0.49 to 0.68). No ceiling or floor effects were detected. Both versions demonstrated acceptable levels of responsiveness (effect size range=0.30-0.60; correlations range=0.23-0.51; and area under the curve range=0.56-0.76).

Conclusions: The Brazilian-Portuguese versions of the MPQ were found to be reproducible, valid, and responsive for the assessment of pain in patients with musculoskeletal conditions.