Treatment satisfaction data has been increasingly used as an outcome measure for evaluating different therapeutic regimens in recent years. However, published literature focusing on the measurement of treatment satisfaction is limited. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this review is to summarize different measures for treatment satisfaction research from published literature. METHODS: English-language studies published between 1989 to September 1999 were identified through a MEDLINE search. RESULTS: Forty-nine studies on treatment satisfaction were identified. The present review indicates a lack of standardization regarding the method of measuring treatment satisfaction. The development of measurements for treatment satisfaction was not well supported by a defined conceptual model. Instruments were often short, self-administered, and ad hoc measures. The limited number of validated disease-specific measures for treatment satisfaction included The Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire, The Seattle Angina Questionnaire, and The Pain Service Satisfaction Test for patients with chronic pain. Applications of treatment satisfaction data were in predicting drug utilization, patient acceptance and adherence to treatment regimens, and monitoring patient needs for improving the quality of health care. Likert-scaling (dissatisfied to satisfied, strongly agree to strongly disagree, poor to excellent) was the most frequently used method in study measures of treatment satisfaction. Common domains or questions that were included in these measures were satisfaction with efficacy, feelings about side effects, ease and convenience of therapy, desire to continue therapy, cost of therapy, recommendation to others, and overall treatment satisfaction. The studies of treatment satisfaction consistently suggested that the treatment satisfaction score should be interpreted and evaluated in conjunction with clinical outcomes and patient quality of life. CONCLUSION: Availability of standardized measures for treatment satisfaction is still limited regardless of an increase in treatment satisfaction research. The conceptualization of assessments and the standardization of measures require further development to increase their utility in outcomes research.