Brief Pain Inventory (BPI)

Description: A measure of pain interference [1].

Format: 9 items in total: 7 items measuring interference with general activity, sleep, mood, relationships, walking (modified to mobility for spinal cord injury [SCI]), normal work, and enjoyment of life, 1 item asking a yes/no question about the experience of pain on that day, and 1 item where the respondent indicates the area in which the pain occurs.

Scoring: Scores are assigned on a scale from 0 (does not interfere) to 10 (completely interferes).

Administration and Burden: Interviewer-administered; Self-administered. Approximately 5 minutes.

Psychometrics for SCI: The BPI has excellent internal consistency and has been found to be valid for use in the SCI population [2].

Languages: The BPI has been translated into over 40 languages.

QoL Concept: The BPI measures Health Related Quality of Life (QoL) by assessing the impact of pain on activities, which corresponds to Boxes C (achievements) and E (subjective evaluations and reactions) of Dijker’s Model.

Permissions/Where to Obtain: Copyrighted; The BPI can be acquired by obtaining permission from Dr. Charles S. Cleeland at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Centre via email at: symptomresearch@mdanderson.org

**CLICK ON THE LISTED SECONDARY HEALTH CONDITIONS ON THE RIGHT TO READ HOW THE BPI HAS BEEN USED WITH A PARTICULAR CONDITION**

References:

1. Cleeland CS, Ryan KM. Pain assessment: Global use of the Brief Pain Inventory. Ann Acad Med Singapore 1994;23:129-38.
2. Raichle KA, Osborne TL, Jensen MP, Cardenas DD. The reliability and validity of pain interference measures in persons with spinal cord injury. J Pain 2006;7:179-86.