Pain Rankings

• The Mankoski Pain Scale sets 0 as pain free and 10 as pain severe enough to cause unconsciousness. In between are gradients 1 and 2 as relatively minor, 3 to 5 as distracting pain, and 6 through 9 as progressively worse. At level 8, pain severely limits physical activity and even reading takes effort. Level 9 is classified as near delirium (see References for a link to the complete Mankoski Pain Scale).
  
  

Medication

• The Mankoski Pain Scale also ranks pain by how effective pain relievers are at eliminating or reducing the symptoms. The scale lists levels of no medications needed, levels where mild pain relievers including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen work and other levels where stronger painkillers such as codeine and the strongest medications such as morphine are necessary.
  
  

Purpose

• The Mankoski Pain Scale is useful for patients to bring along to their health care provider for a more effective way of describing their level of pain. Because the scale was originally designed to describe pelvic pain due to endometriosis, many Internet forums focusing on this health condition have members using the scale to discuss their situations with one another. However, the scale is useful for any type of pain.
  
  

Chronic Pain Research

• Some researchers have found the Mankoski Pain Scale useful. For instance, researchers in a study published in a 2006 issue of the Californian Journal of Health Promotion explored the daily routines of people with chronic pain to develop a theory on the role of occupation in the lives of people with chronic pain. These researchers used the Mankoski scale as part of their assessment tools.
  
  

Multiple Sclerosis Research

• Another study utilizing the Mankoski Pain Scale was published in 2008 in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. This study investigated the advantages of aquatic exercise for multiple sclerosis patients, while measuring whether the exercise increased pain. Using the scale, researchers were able to determine that the patients improved muscular strength and endurance without increasing pain levels.