Table 2.
Comparison of measures at baseline and after 4–6 weeks of menthol
| Measure (possible score) | Number | Baseline median (IQ range) | 4–6 weeks median (IQ range) | Mean/median of individual changesb (95 % CI) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brief Pain Inventorya | |||||
| Total BPI (0 to 110) | 38 | 47 (30 to 64) | 34 (6 to 59) | −11 (−16.1 to −5.5) | <0.001 |
| Worst pain item (0 to 10) | 39 | 6 (4 to 7) | 3 (1 to 7) | −1.3 (−2.1 to −0.6) | 0.001 |
| Total interference (0 to 70) | 38 | 32 (17 to 43) | 24 (3 to 37) | −6.3 (−10.2 to −2.5) | 0.002 |
| HADSa | |||||
| Depression (0 to 21) | 38 | 4 (2 to 7) | 4 (1 to 6) | 0b (−1.6 to 0.1) | 0.168c |
| Anxiety (0 to 21) | 38 | 7.5 (4 to 9) | 5 (2 to 8) | −1.7 (−2.6 to −0.8) | 0.001 |
| Total (0 to 42) | 38 | 12 (6 to 16) | 9 (5 to 13) | −2.5 (−4.1 to −0.8) | 0.004 |
| PCSa (0 to 65) | 37 | 13 (9 to 19) | 10 (2 to 17) | −4.5 (−7.0 to 2.0) | 0.001 |
| LANSSa (0 to 24) | 40 | 14 (11 to 19) | 13 (8 to 19) | −1.1 (−2.6 to 0.4) | 0.160 |
| Peg boarda | |||||
| Dominant hand (s) | 15 | 98 (79 to 147) | 85 (77 to 103) | −10.8 (−34 to 12.5) | 0.337 |
| Nondominant hand (s) | 15 | 95 (92 to 147) | 92 (76 to 102) | −13.5 (−34.7 to 7.7) | 0.195 |
| GAITRite | |||||
| Velocity (metres/s) | 21 | 79 (68 to 106) | 93 (79 to 113) | 12.1 (3.6 to 20.6) | 0.008 |
| Cadence (steps/min) | 21 | 100 (89 to 110) | 105 (96 to 113) | 6.0 (0.8 to 11.2) | 0.027 |
BPI Brief Pain Inventory, HADS Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale, LANSS Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptoms and Signs, PCS Pain Catastrophising scale 95 % CI 95 % confidence interval, IQ range interquartile range
aHigher scores indicate more severe symptoms
bMedian change (when distribution of variables relating to the change between baseline and 4–6 weeks was not normally distributed)
cException—compared using paired t test when Wilcoxon signed rank test used