Amending the Pain Scale Used for Postoperative Pain Studies

To the Editor We read with great interest the article by Nugent et al and would like to contribute additional insights to further the discussion on the use of opioids following Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS). In the study, Nugent et al discovered that when the theoretical risk of opioid addiction is assumed to be 0%, the median risk equivalence was found to be 6.5 on the Mankoski pain scale. However, when the theoretical risk rose above 0%, no median risk equivalence was observed. We would like to raise a question regarding the inclusion of an 8 on the Mankoski pain scale in the survey design, considering that most patients who undergo Mohs rarely experience postoperative pain at such high levels, according to a study conducted by Firoz et al. Would the accuracy of the interpolation results be enhanced if the survey design focused solely on pain levels commonly encountered during real-world MMS recovery, making it more applicable to real-life scenarios?

Source: JAMA Dermatology - December 27, 2023 Category: Dermatology Source Type: research