Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2025
Randomized Controlled TrialOrally dissolving pilocarpine tablets for xerostomia in advanced cancer: A pilot N-of-1 feasibility study.
Xerostomia is a common and difficult symptom experienced by patients with cancer. Pilocarpine is a cholinergic agent that stimulates salivation. ⋯ Recruitment to an N-of-1 trial for xerostomia is feasible but attrition was high (50%). Early dropout may have been due to the trial length, complexity, appropriateness or number of questionnaires. Adverse events were generally mild. Two of 10 participants were considered to have benefited from pilocarpine warranting ongoing treatment.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2025
Community out-of-hours palliative care - 'It's a patchwork of services': A qualitative study exploring care provision.
People in receipt of community palliative care usually receive care from a range of services and require access to care 24/7. However, care outside of normal working hours varies, with little understanding of which models of care are optimal. ⋯ This study identifies key characteristics of four common models of out-of-hours palliative care, from the perspectives of professionals. Facilitators of high quality out-of-hours care include: a palliative care specific single point of access for patients; formal structures to integrate generalist/specialist services; and timely/skilled management of symptoms. We provide recommendations for a potential model incorporating these factors.