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    Attention COACH STUDY participants:

    The principal investigators of the study request that you use the official version of the modified score here.

    Nonverbal Pain Scale (NVPS) for Nonverbal Patients

    Quantifies pain in patients unable to speak (due to intubation, dementia, etc).

    INSTRUCTIONS

    One can also use the Behavioral Pain Scale (BPS) for Intubated Patients as an alternative to the NVPS.
    When to Use
    Pearls/Pitfalls
    Why Use

    Patients in critical care settings for whom pain assessment is ongoing.

    • The Nonverbal Pain Scale (NVPS) allows for standardized pain assessment in intubated and other nonverbal patients.
    • Parameters include ventilator synchrony, which is helpful in intubated patients.

    Nonverbal patients express pain variably, making a standardized, accurate tool helpful in the evaluation of pain. Pain can be a cause of abnormal vital signs in the ICU setting, and using a quantitative tool can help confirm or refute this hypothesis.

    No particular expression or smile
    0
    Occasional grimace, tearing, frowning, wrinkled forehead
    +1
    Frequent grimace, tearing, frowning, wrinkled forehead
    +2
    Lying quietly, normal position
    0
    Seeking attention through movement or slow, cautious movement
    +1
    Restless, excessive activity and/or withdrawal reflexes
    +2
    Lying quietly, no positioning of hands over areas of the body
    0
    Splinting areas of the body, tense
    +1
    Rigid, stiff
    +2
    Baseline vital signs unchanged
    0
    Change in SBP>20 mmHg or HR>20 bpm
    +1
    Change in SBP>30 mmHg or HR>25 bpm
    +2
    Baseline RR/SpO₂ synchronous with ventilator
    0
    RR >10 bpm over baseline, 5% decrease SpO₂ or mild ventilator asynchrony
    +1
    RR >20 bpm over baseline, 10% decrease SpO₂ or severe ventilator asynchrony
    +2

    Result:

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    Next Steps
    Evidence
    Creator Insights
    Ms. Margaret Odhner

    About the Creator

    Margaret Odhner, RN, BSN, CCRN, is an adult nurse practitioner at the University of Rochester.

    To view Ms. Margaret Odhner's publications, visit PubMed

    Are you Ms. Margaret Odhner? Send us a message to review your photo and bio, and find out how to submit Creator Insights!
    MDCalc loves calculator creators – researchers who, through intelligent and often complex methods, discover tools that describe scientific facts that can then be applied in practice. These are real scientific discoveries about the nature of the human body, which can be invaluable to physicians taking care of patients.
    About the Creator
    Ms. Margaret Odhner
    Are you Ms. Margaret Odhner?
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