Cerebral palsy pain instruments: Recommended tools for clinical research studies by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Cerebral Palsy Common Data Elements project.

AIM

This study describes the process of updating the cerebral palsy (CP) common data elements (CDEs), specifically identifying tools that capture the impact of chronic pain on children's functioning.

METHOD

Through a partnership between the American Academy for Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the CP CDEs were developed as data standards for clinical research in neuroscience. Chronic pain was underrepresented in the NINDS CP CDEs version 1.0. A multi-step methodology was applied by an interdisciplinary professional team. Following an adapted CP chronic pain tools' rating system, and a review of psychometric properties, clinical utility, and compliance with inclusion/exclusion criteria, a set of recommended pain tools was posted online for external public comment in May 2022.

RESULTS

Fifteen chronic pain tools met inclusion criteria, representing constructs across all components of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.

INTERPRETATION

This paper describes the first condition-specific pain CDEs for a pediatric population. The proposed set of chronic pain tools complement and enhance the applicability of the existing pediatric CP CDEs. The novel CP CDE pain tools harmonize the assessment of chronic pain, addressing not only intensity of chronic pain, but also the functional impact of experiencing it in everyday activities.