Measurement of Activity Levels in Patients with Chronic Pain

Abstract

Patients with chronic pain frequently are asked to keep daily activity diaries. Information from the diaries can be used as an index of improvement in physical functioning. For some patients, however, the reliability of activity diary data may be poor. Because of this problem, it is suggested that increased attention be given to alternative activity measurement techniques. The present study examined the comparability between self-monitoring and automated activity level measurement. Subjects included 20 chronic lower back pain patients. Activity levels were concurrently recorded over 4 days with the two measurement systems. Results showed that subjects recorded significantly lower levels of activity with self-monitoring compared to reliable automated measurement. These results call into question reliance on self-monitoring activity level systems by chronic pain researchers and clinicians. Expanded development and use of automated measurement systems is recommended.