Articles: pain-management.
-
Endotracheal aspiration, a procedure that is particularly painful for intensive care patients, has received little attention in terms of pain evaluation specifically among intubated patients with COVID-19 in intensive care. ⋯ The study findings showed that nonverbal pain scores of sedated and intubated intensive care patients diagnosed with COVID-19 increased during endotracheal aspiration, accompanied by physiologic pain indicators. Effective pain management should be a priority for nurses. It is important to remember that patients with COVID-19 in the intensive care unit may experience pain while sedated and intubated. A holistic approach should be adopted for the evaluation and relief of pain in these patients. Intensive care nurses should consider physiologic and nonverbal behavioral pain indicators when evaluating pain in patients diagnosed with COVID-19.
-
In addition to a physical and emotional experience, pain is also a morally infused experience with deep, often subconscious, meaning for many sufferers. Whether justified or not, for many people, pain may represent loss, judgement, unworthiness, abandonment, punishment, and even existential suffering and thoughts of death. The moral meaning of pain is what influences the associated experiences of stigma, loneliness, and guilt that contribute to suffering. ⋯ In this paper, I explore the definition of morality itself, the moral meaning of pain, and its implications for care. I discuss how moral pluralism in contemporary society contributes to various moral perceptions that influence a person's pain experience and how their pain is treated. Finally, I make the case that using a narrative approach to intentionally look for moral meaning in an individual's pain story may reveal opportunities for more effective pain management options.
-
Paediatric anaesthesia · Feb 2024
Case ReportsSphenopalatine ganglion blocks for post-dural puncture headache: A case report in a 3-year-old child.
Post-dural puncture headache is a distressing complication that may occur after lumbar puncture or unintentional dural puncture. Risk factors in the pediatric population have not been well elicited, and the true incidence is unknown. ⋯ Epidural blood patch remains the gold standard for managing severe refractory headache, but greater occipital nerve blocks and sphenopalatine ganglion blocks have been used with success. Sphenopalatine ganglion blocks are easy to perform, minimally invasive and, in the postoperative setting where epidural analgesia is utilized, provide an alternative that should be considered.
-
Nurses include spirituality in holistic nursing care of persons in pain. However, there is a lack of awareness of spiritual suffering and the role of chaplains and spiritual care in pain management. ⋯ Spiritual suffering can occur in people in pain. An early consultation with hospital chaplains can augment pain management. A person in pain may experience spiritual suffering and a chaplain can provide the appropriate assessment and intervention.