Nijmegen Questionnaire

Do you have any of the symptoms listed in the left hand column of the table below?  The questionnaire is designed to assess whether you have any problems with overbreathing (also known as hyperventilation).

You can test yourself using the Nijmegen questionnaire online here

Or you can print out the questionnaire and put a circle round the number in the column that best describes the frequency with which you experienced any of the symptoms listed in the left hand column during the past 2 weeks. Then add up the numbers you circled in each column. The total of all the circled numbers is your final score.

Never = you had no experience of this symptom over the last two weeks

Rarely = you experienced this symptom less than once a week

Sometimes = you experienced this symptom about 2-3 times a week

Often = you experienced this symptom most days

Very Often = you experienced this symptom every day, or more than once a day

	Never	Rarely	Some times	Often	Very often
Chest pain	0	1	2	3	4
Feeling tense	0	1	2	3	4
Blurred vision	0	1	2	3	4
Dizziness	0	1	2	3	4
Confusion or loss of touch with reality	0	1	2	3	4
Fast or deep breathing	0	1	2	3	4
Shortness of breath	0	1	2	3	4
Tightness across chest	0	1	2	3	4
Bloated sensation in stomach	0	1	2	3	4
Tingling in fingers and hands	0	1	2	3	4
Difficulty in breathing or taking a deep breath	0	1	2	3	4
Stiffness or cramps in fingers and hands	0	1	2	3	4
Tightness around the mouth	0	1	2	3	4
Cold hands or feet	0	1	2	3	4
Palpitations in the chest	0	1	2	3	4
Anxiety	0	1	2	3	4
SubTotals	a)______	b)_____	c)_____	d)_____	e)____
Total (a+b+c+d+e)_____

If your total is 23 points or more, then you currently have a positive score for overbreathing.

As with all diagnostic tests, it is possible to draw false conclusions – the terms ‘sensitivity’ and ‘specificity’ describe how often (on average) any test produces true positives and true negatives. This Nijmegen questionnaire has a sensitivity of 91% and a specificity of 95%, which means that it is probable that your test results reflect the truth – but there is always a small element of doubt.

Reference:
Van Dixhoorn J, Duivenvoorden HJ. Efficacy of Nijmegen questionnaire in recognition of the hyperventilation syndrome. J Psychosom Res 1985;29:199-­206.