Browse Items · Pediatric Palliative Care Library

Prognostic factors for survival in 676 consecutive patients with newly diagnosed primary glioblastoma

Reliable data on large cohorts of patients with glioblastoma are needed because such studies differ importantly from trials that have a strong bias toward the recruitment of younger patients with a higher performance status. We analyzed the outcome…

The reflections you get': an exploration of body image and cachexia.

BACKGROUND: cachexia has a detrimental effect on quality of life and is an indicator of poor prognosis. The meanings people attach to their lived experiences of cachexia are unknown. AIMS: to explore the impact of cachexia on body image of people…

Symptom pathways from referral to death: measuring palliative care outcomes.

This article reports on the first stage of a process to develop a clinical performance indicator for a community-based palliative care service that may inform the development of an agreed set of indicators for the whole sector. The study explores…

Handgrip strength and mortality in the oldest old population: the Leiden 85-plus study

BACKGROUND: Poor muscular strength has been shown to be associated with increased morbidity and mortality in diverse samples of middle-aged and elderly people. However, the oldest old population (i.e., over 85 years) is underrepresented in such…

Smoked cannabis for chronic neuropathic pain: a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Chronic neuropathic pain affects 1%-2% of the adult population and is often refractory to standard pharmacologic treatment. Patients with chronic pain have reported using smoked cannabis to relieve pain, improve sleep and improve mood.…

Physician-assisted deaths under the euthanasia law in Belgium: a population-based survey

BACKGROUND: Legalization of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide has been heavily debated in many countries. To help inform this debate, we describe the practices of euthanasia and assisted suicide, and the use of life-ending drugs without an…

Posttraumatic growth in former Vietnam prisoners of war

This study examined posttraumatic growth in 30 male veterans captured and held as prisoners of war during the Vietnam War. Participants were assessed with structured diagnostic interviews administered by trained clinicians as well as with the…

An overview of contemporary social work practice in palliative care.

First documented rhythm and clinical outcome from in-hospital cardiac arrest among children and adults

CONTEXT: Cardiac arrests in adults are often due to ventricular fibrillation (VF) or pulseless ventricular tachycardia (VT), which are associated with better outcomes than asystole or pulseless electrical activity (PEA). Cardiac arrests in children…

Psychometric properties of the Dutch version of the posttraumatic growth inventory among cancer patients

In the current study, we investigated the psychometric properties of a Dutch translation of the posttraumatic growth inventory in a heterogeneous group of cancer patients. Its original five-factor structure was maintained. The internal consistency of…

Experience in the use of the palliative care outcome scale.

GOALS OF WORK: The objective of the study is to assess the Palliative Care Outcome Scale (POS) as a potential audit tool within a specialist cancer centre. It also aims to answer the following questions: does the tool identify problem areas and…

Safety and efficacy of rosuvastatin therapy for the prevention of hyperlipidemia in adult cardiac transplant recipients

BACKGROUND: Hyperlipidemia after orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT) is associated with immunosuppression. Many OHT patients have increased lipid levels above published guidelines despite treatment with high doses of statins. Treatment with…

Coping with chronic pain

Many models of pain give coping an important role in understanding adaptation to chronic pain. Among these, Lazarus and Folkman's cognitive-phenomenological model of stress and coping provides a theoretical framework to conceptualise stress phenomena…

Interaction of serotonergic antidepressants and opioid analgesics: Is serotonin syndrome going undetected?

OBJECTIVES: To describe the potential for interaction between opioids and serotonergic antidepressants leading to the development of serotonin syndrome (SS), mechanism of the interaction, and the spectrum of SS in elderly residents of a long-term…

Symptoms of anxiety and depression in family members of intensive care unit patients before discharge or death. A prospective multicenter study

STUDY OBJECTIVES: More than two thirds of family members visiting intensive care unit (ICU) patients have symptoms of anxiety or depression during the first days of hospitalization. Identifying determinants of these symptoms would help caregivers…

Nociceptin levels in the cerebrospinal fluid of chronic pain patients with or without intrathecal administration of morphine

The neuropeptide nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ) is the endogenous ligand for the opioid-like receptor ORL-1 and is thought to be involved in pain transmission and modulation. Human studies have not yet defined its role in pain patients. The aims of…

Resource utilization for ovarian cancer patients at the end of life: how much is too much?

OBJECTIVE: End-of-life (EOL) medical care consumes 10-12% of national health care expenditures and 27% of Medicare dollars annually. Studies suggest that hospice services decrease EOL expenditures by 25-40%. The goal of this study was to compare the…

Nonheart failure-associated elevation of amino terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide in the setting of sepsis

In addition to its importance in clinical assessment, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT pro-BNP) is a valuable marker for evaluation of treatment and prognosis of heart failure. However, there are situations where NT pro-BNP is not related…

Couples at risk following the death of their child: predictors of grief versus depression

This longitudinal study examined the relative impact of major variables for predicting adjustment (in terms of both grief and depression) among bereaved parents following the death of their child. Couples (N = 219) participated 6, 13, and 20 months…

Perceived stress in HIV-infected individuals: Physiological and psychological correlates.

The purpose of this study was to determine the correlation of perceived stress with selected physiological and psychological factors in an HIV-infected, predominantly African American population and to assess the multivariable effects on perceived…

The benefits of a hospital-based inpatient palliative care consultation service: preliminary outcome data

This report describes the multiple complementary analytic methods used to create a composite evaluation of the benefits of a hospital-based inpatient palliative care consultation service at Montefiore Medical Center in its preliminary phase. We…

Palliative care outcomes research: the next steps

2005

Tags: 2005, Aged, Backlog, Hospital Mortality/trends, Hospitalization/statistics & numerical data/trends, Humans, Journal Article, Journal of Palliative Medicine, Morrison RS, P.H.S., Palliative Care/trends, Research, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, United States

Impact of palliative care case management on resource use by patients dying of cancer at a Veterans Affairs medical center

BACKGROUND: The VA Puget Sound Health Care System (VAPSHCS) started a palliative care service (PCS) in October 2001 to provide case management for patients with advanced cancer. OBJECTIVE: To examine resource use during the last 60 days of life for…

Prognostication in hospice care: can the palliative performance scale help?

BACKGROUND: Accurate prognostication of the trajectory of an illness provides multiple benefits in end-of-life care. Prognostic information facilitates more realistic decision making regarding ongoing treatment, fosters risk-benefit considerations of…

Final transitions: family caregiving at the end of life

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to understand how caregivers make the transition to end-stage caregiving and to illuminate its unique aspects using a stress process model. METHODS: Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with 74 caregivers of a…

Parenteral nutrition in advanced cancer: indications and clinical practice guidelines

Cachexia is a disturbing and disfiguring aspect of many advanced cancers. Parenteral nutrition (PN) is a controversial and expensive treatment for cancer cachexia. Guidelines for the use of PN for these patients have been suggested. These two case…

Advanced illness index: Predictive modeling to stratify elders using self-report data

OBJECTIVES: Develop a prediction model to identify persons who have an increased risk of dying within the next 36 months, in order to focus additional resources and assessment in areas related to advanced care planning. DESIGN: Retrospective study…

Clinical manifestation and natural course of late-onset Pompe's disease in 54 Dutch patients

Late-onset Pompe's disease (acid maltase deficiency, glycogen storage disease type II) is a slowly progressive myopathy caused by deficiency of acid alpha-glucosidase. Current developments in enzyme replacement therapy require detailed knowledge of…

The spectrum of adult congenital heart disease in Europe: morbidity and mortality in a 5 year follow-up period. The Euro Heart Survey on adult congenital heart disease

AIMS: To describe clinical and demographic characteristics at baseline of a European cohort of adults with congenital heart disease (CHD) and to assess mortality and morbidity in a 5 year follow-up period. METHODS AND RESULTS: Data collected as part…

Analgesic effects of topical methadone: a report of four cases

Topical morphine has been used on open wounds for pain management, but has a variable duration of action not suitable for palliative dressing changes. The objective of this study is to find an opioid and delivery method that would provide…

Prospective audit of short-term concurrent ketamine, opioid and anti-inflammatory ('triple-agent') therapy for episodes of acute on chronic pain

AIM: This prospective audit was undertaken in order to document the analgesic response and adverse effects of concurrent short-term ('burst') triple-agent analgesic (ketamine, an opioid and an anti-inflammatory agent--either steroidal or…

Inter-religious perspectives on hope and limits in cancer treatment

2005

Tags: 2005, 80 and over Breast Neoplasms/drug therapy/pathology/psychology Decision Making Family Health Female Hospice Care HumansMother-Child RelationsPalliative Care Physician-Patient Relations PrognosisReligion Truth Disclosure, Aged, Astrow AB, Backlog, Journal Article, Journal Of Clinical Oncology, Mattson I, PedPal Lit, Ponet RJ, White M

Disease severity in children and adults with Pompe disease related to age and disease duration

Information about 255 children and adults with Pompe disease was gathered through a questionnaire. Disease severity was associated with disease duration and not with age; an early manifestation of the disease implied earlier wheelchair or ventilator…

Late-onset neurologic disease in glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency

Neurologic disease in glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase (GCDH) deficiency usually presents with acute encephalopathic crises before 2 years of age. The authors report two previously asymptomatic patients with macrocephaly presenting with progressive…

Course of disability and respiratory function in untreated late-onset Pompe disease

Fifty-two untreated patients with late-onset Pompe disease completed questionnaires about their clinical condition and level of handicap at baseline and at 1-year (n = 41) and 2-year follow-ups (n = 40). During this period, declines in functional…

Distance from home when death occurs: a population-based study of Washington State, 1989-2002

OBJECTIVE: For patients who die in hospitals, the regionalization of tertiary health care services may be increasing the home-to-hospital distance, particularly for younger patients whose care is especially regionalized and for whom access to and use…

The Holocaust as a context for telling life stories

Using a narrative approach, this study explores the role of the Holocaust in the life stories of Survivors, contrasted with two comparison groups (one Jewish and one non-Jewish) whose direct experiences did not include surviving the Holocaust. Using…

Resource utilization and outcome in gravely ill intensive care unit patients with predicted in-hospital mortality rates of 95% or higher by APACHE III scores: the relationship with physician and family expectations

OBJECTIVE: To assess resource utilization and outcome in gravely ill patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) and the potential association with health care workers' and family members' expectations. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively…

The comprehensive care team: a controlled trial of outpatient palliative medicine consultation

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the use of palliative care for outpatients who continue to pursue treatment of their underlying disease or whether outpatient palliative medicine consultation teams improve clinical outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a…

Talking with terminally ill patients and their caregivers about death, dying, and bereavement: is it stressful? Is it helpful?

BACKGROUND: Discussing end-of-life issues with terminally ill patients is often considered distressing and harmful. This study was conducted to assess whether interviewing terminally ill patients and their caregivers about death, dying, and…

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