A Danish adaptation of the Pain Coping Questionnaire for children: preliminary data concerning reliability and validity

The aim of this study was to determine the reliability and validity of a Da nish translation of the Pain Coping Questionnaire (PCQ) for children in Dan ish children. The PCQ was translated using a translation-back-translation m ethod. The subjects were 352 healthy children and 40 children with juvenile arthritis (JA), aged 8-17 y. Sixteen of the JA children were divided into a high-pain group (n = 7) and a low-pain group (n = 9). The results were fa ctor analysed using principal component analysis with varimax rotation. Cli nical pain intensity was measured using visual analogue scales (VAS) from t he Varni/Thompson Pediatric Pain Questionnaire. Experimental pain was induc ed using a cold presser pain paradigm and outcome measures were pain intens ity, pain discomfort and tolerance to cold presser pain. A seven-factor sol ution emerged as the most consistent factor structure. Four subscales, Seek ing Social Support (SSS), Cognitive Distraction (CD), Externalizing (EXT) a nd Internalizing/Catastrophizing (INT), corresponded with the parallel subs cales proposed by Reid et al. (Pain 1998; 76: 83-96). Two subscales, Positi ve Self-Statements (PSS) and Behavioral Distraction (BD), were composed of four of the five items from the previously proposed subscales. One subscale , Information Seeking/Problem Solving (IP), consisted of items from two sub scales proposed by Reid et al., i.e. Information Seeking and Problem Solvin g. Internal consistencies of the subscales were acceptable, with reliabilit y coefficients ranging from 0.60 (BD) to 0.83 (IP) and with test-retest rel iabilities between 0.59 and 0.78. Low-pain JA patients showed significantly higher levels of ED than High-pain JA patients (p < 0.05). Greater utiliza tion of PSS and ED was associated with less patient-reported present pain a nd less average everyday pain (p < 0.05-0.01), and greater utilization of I NT was significantly associated with higher experimental pain intensity (p < 0.01). These preliminary findings provide support for the reliability and validity of the Danish modification of the PCQ in a Danish population and for the hypothesis that paediatric pain-coping strategies are associated wi th the intensity of clinical and experimental pain.