Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Mar 2013
Review Meta AnalysisEpisodic breathlessness in patients with advanced disease: a systematic review.
Although episodic breathlessness (EB) is reported to be highly prevalent in advanced disease, our understanding about it is limited. ⋯ EB is a common symptom in patients with advanced disease, but information about characteristics and experiences is limited. As there is no common terminology, an agreed definition is needed to foster research to develop effective treatments for EB.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Feb 2013
Review Meta AnalysisDo community specialist palliative care services that provide home nursing increase rates of home death for people with life-limiting illnesses? A systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative studies.
Systematic reviews and meta-analyses suggest that community specialist palliative care services (SPCSs) can avoid hospitalizations and enable home deaths. But more information is needed regarding the relative efficacies of different models. Family caregivers highlight home nursing as the most important service, but it is also likely the most costly. ⋯ A meta-analysis found evidence to be inconclusive that community SPCSs that offer home nursing increase home deaths without compromising symptoms or increasing costs. But a compelling trend warrants further confirmatory studies. Future trials should compare the relative efficacy of different models and intensities of SPCSs.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2012
Meta AnalysisSafety and Tolerability of Once-Daily OROS(®) hydromorphone extended-release in opioid-tolerant adults with moderate-to-severe chronic cancer and noncancer pain: pooled analysis of 11 clinical studies.
The efficacy and tolerability of once-daily hydromorphone extended release (ER) (OROS(®) hydromorphone ER, Exalgo(®), Mallinckrodt Brand Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Hazelwood, MO) in patients with chronic cancer and noncancer pain have been reported in previous studies. ⋯ Once-daily OROS hydromorphone ER demonstrated a safety and tolerability profile in opioid-tolerant patients that is consistent with the known safety profiles of opioids.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2012
Review Meta AnalysisComing to your senses: detecting taste and smell alterations in chemotherapy patients. A systematic review.
Taste alterations (TAs) and smell alterations (SAs) are frequently observed, yet understudied side effects in chemotherapy patients, considerably affecting patients' quality of life. ⋯ Current research results do not allow firm conclusions concerning the occurrence, severity, and quality of TAs and SAs under different chemotherapy regimens. Patient information on TAs and SAs, therefore, largely is based on the clinician's experience. In the palliative care setting, TAs and SAs need further investigation in the light of their importance in preventing food-related problems and maintaining a reasonable quality of life.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Nov 2012
Review Meta AnalysisThe role of ondansetron in the management of cholestatic or uremic pruritus--a systematic review.
Pruritus associated with hepatic or renal failure can be a troublesome symptom, refractory to treatment and associated with significant physical and emotional distress and a reduction in quality of life for patients already burdened with chronic disease. Serotonin has been implicated as a possible pathological mediator, and, therefore, 5HT(3) antagonists have been suggested as a possible therapeutic intervention. ⋯ Ondansetron was demonstrated to have negligible effect on cholestatic or uremic pruritus on the basis of a limited number of studies.