Journal of palliative medicine
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Patients receiving hospice or palliative care often receive antimicrobial therapy; however the effectiveness of antimicrobial therapy for symptom management in these patients is unknown. ⋯ Limited data are available on the use of antimicrobial therapy for symptom management among patients receiving palliative or hospice care. Future studies should systematically measure symptom response and control for important confounders to provide useful data to guide antimicrobial use in this population.
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Case Reports
Use of intravenous acetaminophen (paracetamol) in a pediatric patient at the end of life: case report.
For the better part of 100 years, acetaminophen (or paracetamol as it is known outside of the United States) has been a common first-line analgesic in pediatrics and is typically well tolerated with minimal side effects. Its use as an anti-pyretic is also well-documented and thus it is used broadly for symptom control in the general pediatric population. ⋯ Here, we describe a case using intravenous acetaminophen in a pediatric patient at the end of life.
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Data about pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) family conferences (FCs) are needed to enhance our understanding of the role of FCs in patient care and build a foundation for future research on PICU communication and decision making. ⋯ Most identified FCs involved complex patients or patients who faced decisions affecting the child's quality of life or dying. For many patients who faced life changing decisions we did not identify a FC. Further research is needed to understand how to best utilize FCs and less formal conversations.