McGill Pain Index / Pain Scale for CRPS

The McGill Pain Scale is one of the most widely used ways to compare how painful different conditions can be. It’s based on the McGill Pain Questionnaire, which asks people to rate and describe their pain using words and numbers.

When the scores from people with different conditions are compared, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) often ranks among the highest on the scale — higher than childbirth, amputation or other chronic pain conditions. This shows just how severe and overwhelming CRPS can be, both physically and emotionally.

The McGill Pain Scale helps others understand that CRPS isn’t “just” chronic pain — it’s an incredibly intense and complex condition that affects every part of daily life.

It was originally developed as the McGill pain questionnaire back in 1971 at the McGill University by two researchers, Ronald Melzack and Warren Togerson.

The original McGill pain questionnaire in 1971 had three major classes of word descriptors, which were:

• Sensory – Sensitivity, skin colour or temperature changes
• Affective – How it affects you as a sufferer (e.g. fear, tension)
• Evaluative – Finding where the pain is

The McGill pain questionnaire also had an intensity scale to determine the properties of pain experience of sufferers.

(Melzack, R. 1975)

McGill Pain Index - Burning Nights CRPS Support

There are a large number of different pictorial versions of the McGill Pain Index for CRPS, the Burning Nights CRPS Support version is below:

As you can see on the scale above, CRPS is classed as the most painful chronic pain condition that is known. It reaches approx 42 out of 50 on the McGill Pain Scale. In some research it has been said that CRPS Type II can reach as high as 47 out of 50.

Living with CRPS can be incredibly difficult to put into words. The McGill Pain Scale helps you to show others — whether it's a healthcare professional or your family and friends — just how severe and complex this pain really is.

Seeing CRPS ranked so highly on the McGill Pain Scale does validate what many people already know from experience: this isn’t ordinary pain and it’s certainly not “all in your head.”

Understanding where CRPS sits on the McGill Pain Index can also help families and carers appreciate what their loved one is going through. It gives a way to open up conversations about daily challenges, treatment decisions as well as the emotional impact of the condition. For those living with CRPS, it can feel empowering to have something concrete that supports your lived experience, helping to raise awareness and reduce stigma.

The McGill Pain Scale can be a helpful tool to take into your medical appointments or to use alongside a pain diary. It can make it easier to explain your symptoms and how your pain changes from day to day. Using descriptive words from the scale — such as burning, stabbing, aching, or crushing — helps healthcare professionals understand the full picture of your pain and its emotional effects.

You can also share the scale with family, friends, or colleagues to help them understand why CRPS affects so many areas of your life. Combining this with self-management tools, like pacing or relaxation techniques, can support you in tracking your progress over time and feeling more in control of your care.

The McGill Pain Index for CRPS is an important part of chronic or persistent pain evaluation as well as evaluating Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. It is also a good way of showing those living with CRPS and their families, friends and loved ones that not only does CRPS exist, but is an extremely painful chronic pain condition.

Help us raise awareness — share this page to help others understand the true impact of CRPS and why better awareness, treatment and support are so important.

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Last Updated: 03/11/2025