Pain Assessment Tools

NC State Assessment Tools

Clinical Metrology tools may be used for veterinary studies evaluating an intervention or treatment; translational studies using naturally occurring disease in animals as a model of human disease; clinical veterinary patient management. Find out more by visiting the Translational Research in Pain (TRiP) website here.

Acute Pain in Cats

The Feline Grimace Scale.
Grimace scales are tools used to evaluate pain in animals based on changes in facial expressions and they have been developed in different species. Pain assessment in cats | Feline Grimace Scale

Osteoarthritis Pain in Dogs

Canine Brief Pain Inventory (CBPI): https://www.vet.upenn.edu/research/clinical-trials-vcic/our-services/pennchart/cbpi-tool

Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (LOAD): https://my.elanco.com/au/insights-centre/the-liverpool-osteoarthritis-in-dogs (explanatory video also on this page)

ACVS Canine Orthopedic Index: https://www.vet.upenn.edu/research/clinical-trials-vcic/our-services/pennchart/canine-orthopedic-index

Osteoarthritis Pain in Cats

There are currently four pain scales that have been developed for use in cats with osteoarthritis. Three of them are meant to be completed by the cat’s owner and one of them by the veterinarian. Below, you will find a brief description of each scale, how to access them and a list of relevant references:

• Feline Musculoskeletal Pain Index – short form (FMPI-sf)
  Developed for use by owners to assess the severity and impact of musculoskeletal pain. It contains 9 items asking about activities that are negatively impacted by joint pain. The FMPI pain scale can be downloaded from the website of the North Carolina State University using the following link: https://cvm.ncsu.edu/research/labs/clinical-sciences/comparative-pain-research/clinical-metrology-instruments/
• Client Specific Outcome Measures (CSOM)
  Developed for owner assessment of the impact of pain on the cat’s ability to perform activities that are specific to each individual cat. There are no set items and the owner, guided by the veterinarian or technician, choses specific activities relevant to their cat including time and place. The CSOM pain scale can be downloaded from the website of the North Carolina State University using the following link: https://cvm.ncsu.edu/research/labs/clinical-sciences/comparative-pain-research/clinical-metrology-instruments/
• Montreal Instrument for Cat Arthritis Testing for use by caretaker (MI-CAT(C)) Developed for owner assessment of clinical signs of osteoarthritis in cats. It contains 38 items including agility; social, play and exploratory behaviours; self-maintenance; and physical condition. The MI- CAT(C) can be found as a supplementary file from the articles where they were originally published (Klinck et al. 2018: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159117303271 ).
• Montreal Instrument for Cat Arthritis Testing for use by veterinarian (MI-CAT(V)) Developed for veterinarian assessment of clinical signs of osteoarthritis in cats. It contains 25 items involving body posture, gait, willingness and ease of horizontal movements, jumping and a general lameness score. The MI-CAT(V) can be found as a supplementary file from the articles where they were originally published. (Klinck et al. 2018: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1098612X17730172).