Computer pain assessment tool

Abstract

A computer assisted system for objective assessment by a patient of pain experienced is presented with successive computer screens. A first interactive screen includes anterior and posterior images of a body replica. The user indicates a pain area on the images corresponding to an area on the body having pain and a percentage pain area is calculated. A second interactive screen indicates pain intensity in the pain area. A third interactive screen indicates pain type. A fourth interactive screen indicates pain depth in response to input from the user. A fifth interactive screen displays confirmation information. The first through fourth screens are re-displayed for modification in response to the user, if selected. The fifth screen is then re-displayed in response to modifications and a final screen displayed in response to a confirmation of accuracy. Data is saved and a printable report created.

1 - 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A computer assisted system for objective assessment by a patient of a nature and extent of pain experienced by the patient comprising:
 a computer; a memory; a computer display; a user input device; and a computer program stored in the memory and executable by the computer to:   display a first interactive screen presentation including an anterior image and a posterior image of a body replica, the images containing a fixed quantity of pixels;   indicate, in response to user input via the user input device, a pain area on the images, the pain area corresponding to an area on the patient's body having pain, the indicated pain area comprising a number of indicated pixels;   calculate and display a percentage pain area, wherein the percentage pain area is the number of indicated pixels on the images divided by the fixed quantity of pixels in the images multiplied by 100;   display a second interactive screen presentation that indicates pain intensity in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain intensity corresponding to the pain intensity the patient is having;   display a third interactive screen presentation that indicates pain type in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain type selectable from a preprogrammed list of pain types, the pain type indicative of the type of pain the patient is having;   display a fourth interactive screen presentation that indicates pain depth in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain depth corresponding to the depth of pain the patient is having;   display a fifth interactive screen presentation via the computer display screen, wherein the fifth interactive screen presentation displays visually to the user the pain area, pain intensity, pain type and pain depth as indicated by input from the user;   display an option to confirm or deny the accuracy of the fifth interactive screen presentation;   re-display the first through fourth interactive screen presentations for modification by the user in response to a selection of the option to deny the accuracy of the fifth screen presentation;   re-display the fifth screen presentation in response to modifications made by the user;   display a final screen presentation in response to a selection of the option to confirm the accuracy of the fifth screen presentation;   save data associated with the final screen presentation; and   create a printable report incorporating at least a portion of the saved data.   
     
     
         22 . The computer assisted system of  claim 21  wherein a color spectrum scale represents pain intensity. 
     
     
         23 . The computer assisted system of  claim 22  wherein a shading scale represents the pain depth. 
     
     
         24 . The computer assisted system of  claim 21  wherein the third interactive screen presentation further offers an option to indicate a second pain area. 
     
     
         25 . The computer assisted system of  claim 24  wherein the percentage pain area is the number of indicated pixels in all pain areas indicated on the images, divided by the fixed quantity of pixels in the images, multiplied by 100. 
     
     
         26 . The computer assisted system of  claim 21  wherein the computer program is further executable to calculate and display an objective pain value from a number of pixels indicated on the first interactive screen presentation, divided by the fixed quantity of pixels, multiplied by a pain intensity on a scale of zero to one hundred. 
     
     
         27 . The computer assisted system of  claim 21  wherein at least two of the interactive screen presentations are displayed simultaneously. 
     
     
         28 . A method of computer documentation of patient data for prescribing therapy, including computer-assisted self-assessment of pain by a patient, comprising the steps of:
 displaying a first interactive screen presentation including an anterior image and a posterior image of a body replica, the images containing a fixed quantity of pixels;   indicating, in response to user input via the user input device, a pain area on the images, the pain area corresponding to an area on the patient's body having pain, the indicated pain area comprising a number of indicated pixels;   calculating and displaying a percentage pain area, wherein the percentage pain area is the number of indicated pixels on the images divided by the fixed quantity of pixels in the images multiplied by 100;   displaying a second interactive screen presentation that indicates pain intensity in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain intensity corresponding to the pain intensity the patient is having;   displaying a third interactive screen presentation that indicates pain type in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain type selectable from a preprogrammed list of pain types, the pain type indicative of the type of pain the patient is having;   displaying a fourth interactive screen presentation that indicates pain depth in the pain area in response to input from the user, the pain depth corresponding to the depth of pain the patient is having;   displaying a fifth interactive screen presentation indicating visually to the user the pain area, pain intensity, pain type and pain depth as indicated by input from the user.   
     
     
         29 . A method as in  claim 28  further comprising the step of: displaying an option to confirm or deny the accuracy of the fifth interactive screen presentation. 
     
     
         30 . A method as in  claim 29  further comprising the step of: re-displaying the first through fourth interactive screen presentations for modification by the user in response to a selection of the option to deny the accuracy of the fifth screen presentation. 
     
     
         31 . A method as in  claim 30  further comprising the step of: re-displaying the fifth screen presentation in response to modifications made by the user. 
     
     
         32 . A method as in  claim 28  further comprising the step of: displaying a final screen presentation in response to a selection of the option to confirm the accuracy of the fifth screen presentation. 
     
     
         33 . A method as in  claim 32  further comprising the step of: saving data associated with the final screen presentation; and creating a report incorporating at least a portion of the saved data.