• Lauren Hammond, Amal Chakraborty, Courtney Thorpe, Muireann O'Loughlin, Peter Allcroft, and Caroline Phelan.
• Research Centre for Palliative Care, Death and Dying, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University (L.H., A.C., C.T., M.O., P.A., C.P.), Bedford Park, South Australia.
• J Pain Symptom Manage. 2023 Jul 1; 66 (1): e45e68e45-e68.

ContextThirst and dry mouth are interlinked symptoms that frequently cause significant distress for patients with life-limiting conditions.ObjectivesThe objective of this rapid review was to identify and synthesize effective interventions that relieve perceptions of thirst and dry mouth of patients with palliative care and end-of-life care needs.MethodsEligible studies were undertaken in clinical settings, with patients experiencing thirst-related distress and/or dry mouth. This review of peer-reviewed literature was conducted following aspects of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) reporting guidelines. The main outcomes of interest were: 1) efficacy of thirst and dry mouth interventions for patient, and 2) patient, caregiver, and staff acceptability and satisfaction of the interventions. Scientific journal articles were retrieved through searches in electronic databases of MEDLINE (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCO), and AgeLine (EBSCO).ResultsEleven studies were included for analysis and synthesis of the results. Most studies either focused on a dry mouth intervention or reported dry mouth outcomes within a broader thirst intervention (n = 9/11 studies). Standard oral care was the common intervention type (n = 5/11). All but one dry mouth intervention reported statistical improvement in outcomes of interest. All studies that reported on thirst were conducted in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) setting (n = 4/4). No studies specifically addressed thirst in patients in specialist palliative care settings.ConclusionEvidence from this review suggests that thirst interventions established within the ICU setting may prove effective for treatment of terminally ill patients receiving specialist palliative care.Copyright © 2023 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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