[Measuring pain is useful and every doctor can do it: 7 tips]

- Pain is one of the main factors influencing quality of life; its incidence is higher than is generally assumed.- Pain is not spontaneously reported in all cases; it should be asked about more often.- Not measuring pain is one of the main reasons for inadequate pain treatment.- Pain should be assessed and recorded more routinely in both primary and secondary healthcare. This can be done in simple and quick ways.- Self-reporting using a visual-analogue scale or numeric rating scale is the preferred method. This can be done even by patients with a mild cognitive disorder.- Several simple and reliable observational scales exist for patients who cannot report well, e.g. elderly patients with a cognitive disorder or young children.- For chronic pain, the low-threshold use of a multi-dimensional scale will increase the likelihood of successful treatment.