Table 2 Items and operationalisation of the PSBS
Item | Operationalisation | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Score | 0 No impairment | 1 Light impairment | 2 Moderate impairment | 3 High impairment | 4 Severe impairment |
1. Alertness | No impairment | Fatigue during the day | Occasional sleep cycles during the day | Mainly sleep cycles during the day | Somnolence |
2. Confusion | No impairment | Patient feels too weak for temporal and local orientation | Temporary disorientation | Patient feels high impairment, depressive reaction | Severe confusion, helplessness |
3. Restlessness/anxiety | No impairment | Occasional, patient can express the cause | Frequently, care needed | Despite medication, paroxysmal | Pronounced restlessness, panic, suicidal tendencies |
4. Sweating | No impairment | Occasional, after activity | Attacks of sweating accompanied by dizziness | Pronounced sweating, laundry change needed | Persisting, quickly recurring sweating |
5. Weakness | No impairment | Daily routine possible with great effort | Daily routine possible with great effort and periods of rest | Help needed for activities of daily living | Care-dependent |
6. Nausea | No impairment | Temporary with loss of appetite | Occasional, but multiple times per day | High impairment, retching; emesis | Persisting nausea, for hours |
7. Vomiting | No impairment | Occasional vomiting after medication or ingestion | Spontaneous vomiting | Multiple vomiting (per stint) | Excruciating vomiting with persistent nausea |
8. Dyspnoea | No impairment | Dyspnoea on exertion | Dyspnoea on slight exertion | Dyspnoea at rest | Paroxysmal dyspnoea anxiety, medication needed |
9. Coughing | No impairment | Productive cough | Dry cough | Persisting cough | Excruciating cough, pain, fear of suffocation |
10. Itching | No impairment | Occasional | Slight itching | Excruciating itching; medication needed | Excruciating itch despite medication |
11. Pain | Severity 1–2 | Severity 3–4 | Severity 5–6 | Severity 7–8 | Severity 9–10 |
12. Constipationa | No | Yes | -- | -- | -- |