| pubmed-article:15895896 | pubmed:abstractText | Pain is frequently the primary variable in symptomatic clinical trials for the evaluation of rheumatological disorders. The protocol of such trials mention a minimum level of pain as an entry criterion [e.g. a level above the Patient Acceptable Symptoms State (PASS)] and the changes in pain as the primary variable. Usually, the results are expressed at a group level as the mean changes in pain. However, the presentation at an individual level and, in particular, the percentage of patients with a Low Disease Activity State at the end of the study seems more clinically relevant. Pain is usually evaluated using a continuous variable such as a 0-100 visual analogue scale. The cut-offs permitting one to define both the entry criterion and the LDAS are not well established. The objective of this study was to evaluate such cut-offs using a patient-derived perspective. | lld:pubmed |
