The development of a battery of measures for assessing physical functioning of chronic pain patients

The physical performance of chronic pain patients is of major concern both for their assessment and for treatment evaluation. However, there are few widely used physical tests, a shortage of reliability and validity data on published tests, and an over-reliance on self-report or on clinical measures of dubious generalisability. A set of tests was designed to cover speed and endurance in walking, stair climbing, standing up from a chair, sit-ups, arm endurance, grip strength, and peak flow. Standard instructions and testing conditions were used by a trained tester on a population of chronic pain patients before and after a cognitive-behavioural chronic pain management programme. Reliability, validity, and acceptability of each test was examined, and recommendations made for their relative utility.