Journal of pain and symptom management
-
J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Randomized Controlled TrialEffects of an indomethacin oral spray on pain due to oral mucositis in cancer patients treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial (JORTC-PAL04).
Oral mucositis (OM) pain due to anticancer chemo- and radiotherapy has a very negative impact on patient quality of life. However, no high-quality studies have been performed regarding the analgesic efficacy of indomethacin (IM) oral spray for OM pain. ⋯ IM oral spray alleviated short-term OM pain due to anticancer chemo- and radiotherapy, and may reduce the difficulty in eating meals.
-
J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Genetic Predictors of Response to Acupuncture or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia in Cancer Survivors: An Exploratory Analysis.
Insomnia is a common problem affecting cancer survivors. While effective nonpharmacological treatments are available, it is unknown whether individual genetic characteristics influence treatment response. ⋯ In cancer survivors, specific variants in the COMT and NFKB2 genes are potentially associated with response to acupuncture but not to CBT-I. Confirming these preliminary results will help inform precision insomnia management for cancer survivors.
-
J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Global Experiences of Pediatric Palliative Care Teams During the First 6 Months of the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic.
The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has profoundly impacted the provision of pediatric palliative care (PPC) interventions including goals of care discussions, symptom management, and end-of-life care. ⋯ This original article describes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric palliative care clinicians from 59 countries including financial losses, use of virtual communication modalities, and the respondents' distress in provision of comfort at the end of life.
-
J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Effects of implementation of a standardised Palliative Care Pathway for patients with advanced cancer in a hospital: a prospective pre- and post-intervention study.
Early integration of oncology and palliative care has been recommended to improve patient outcomes at the end of life. A standardized Palliative Care Pathway, consisting of a structured electronic medical checklist, may support such integration. ⋯ Implementation of a Palliative Care Pathway had no overall positive effect on place of death and several aspects of advance care planning. Start of a Palliative Care Pathway in the last months of life may be too late to improve end-of-life care. Future research should focus on strategies enabling earlier start of palliative care interventions.
-
J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Combining multiple decedent data sources for a population-based picture of end-of-life health care utilization.
Although health systems need to track utilization and mortality, it can be difficult to obtain reliable information on patients who die outside of the health system. This leads to missing data and introduces the potential for bias. ⋯ We describe a method to supplement EHR data with decedent information across data sources. While additional decedent data improves the accuracy of death data in the health system, patient healthcare utilization is biased towards those who use the health system at the end of life.