The Impact of Socioeconomic Status on Accurate Pain Reporting in Diabetic Patients

The use of the Numerical Pain Scale (NPS) to know pain levels in minority patients and patients of lower socioeconomic status can make it difficult for them to differentiate their physical pain from other social issues in their life. Implementing the use of postural sway assessment to receive accurate pain levels can possibly be a way to eliminate underreporting of pain from patients. Previous research studies have shown that if patients had a higher level of postural sway that would correlate to a higher pain level and if patients had a lower level of postural sway that would correlate to lower pain levels (Hirata et al., 2021). This research will compare diabetic patient self-reported pain using the NPS to the level of pain observed during postural sway assessment using limits of stability and modified clinical test of sensory integration in balance protocols from the BTrackS force plate and software. From the data that is collected, it can suggest a way for healthcare providers to use the BTrackS balance assessment to receive new information about accurate pain levels. This may help improve diagnosis and treatment speed, leading to an improvement in the quality of life in people dealing with diabetes. This is especially relevant for patients in underserved communities who may under report pain levels at greater rates. Using physical examinations to determine pain gives a more accurate depiction of the pain level patients are experiencing.