Health Qual Life Out
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Health Qual Life Out · Jan 2014
Clinical TrialPatient reports of health outcome for adults living with sickle cell disease: development and testing of the ASCQ-Me item banks.
Providers and patients have called for improved understanding of the health care requirements of adults with sickle cell disease (SCD) and have identified the need for a systematic, reliable and valid method to document the patient-reported outcomes (PRO) of adult SCD care. To address this need, the Adult Sickle Cell Quality of Life Measurement System (ASCQ-Me) was designed to complement the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS®). Here we describe methods and results of the psychometric evaluation of ASCQ-Me item banks (IBs). ⋯ ASCQ-Me pain, sleep, stiffness, emotional and social SCD impact IBs demonstrated exceptional measurement properties using modern and classical psychometric methods of evaluation. Further development of the cognitive impact IB is required to improve its sensitivity to differences in SCD disease severity. Future research will evaluate the sensitivity of the ASCQ-Me IBs to change in SCD disease severity over time due to health interventions.
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Health Qual Life Out · Jan 2014
Comparative StudySelf-report measurement of pain & symptoms in palliative care patients: a comparison of verbal, visual and hand scoring methods in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Despite a high incidence of life-limiting disease, there is a deficit of palliative care outcome evidence in sub-Saharan Africa. Providers of end of life care call for appropriate measurement tools. The objective is to compare four approaches to self-report pain and symptom measurement among African palliative care patients completing the African Palliative Care Association African Palliative Outcome Scale (APCA African POS). ⋯ Hands and faces scoring methods correlate highly with verbal scoring. The Jerrycan method had only moderate weighted Kappa. POS scores can be reliably measured using hand or face score.
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Health Qual Life Out · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialThe effect of continuous passive motion and sling exercise training on clinical and functional outcomes following total knee arthroplasty: a randomized active-controlled clinical study.
The parallel-group randomized active-controlled clinical study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of two in-hospital range of motion (ROM) exercise programs following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Continuous passive motion (CPM) is frequently used to increase ROM and improve postoperative recovery despite little conclusive scientific evidence. In contrast, a new active sling-based ROM therapy requires the activation of the knee joint muscles and dynamic joint stabilization. It was hypothesized that higher demands on muscle strength and muscle coordination during sling exercise training (ST) might be advantageous for early recovery following TKA. ⋯ Therapy, level 2b.
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Health Qual Life Out · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialThe ACTonHEART study: rationale and design of a randomized controlled clinical trial comparing a brief intervention based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to usual secondary prevention care of coronary heart disease.
Modifiable risk factors, including life-style habits and psychological variables, have been increasingly demonstrated to have an important role in influencing morbidity and mortality in cardiovascular patients, and to account for approximately 90% of the population risk for cardiac events.Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has shown effectiveness in promoting healthy behaviors, and improving psychological well-being in patients with chronic physical conditions. Moreover, a first application of an acceptance-based program in cardiac patients has revealed high treatment satisfaction and initial evidences of effectiveness in increasing heart-healthy behaviour. However, no clinical trial to date has evaluated the efficacy of an acceptance-based program for the modification of cardiovascular risk factors and the improvement of psychological well-being, compared to usual secondary prevention care. ⋯ The ACTonHEART study is the first randomized clinical trial designed to evaluate the efficacy of a brief group-administered, ACT-based program to promote health behavior change and psychological well-being among cardiac patients. Results will address the effectiveness of a brief treatment created to simultaneously impact multiple cardiovascular risk factors. Conducted in the context of clinical practice, this trial will potentially offer empirical support to alternative interventions to improve quality of life and reduce mortality and morbidity rates among cardiac patients.
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Health Qual Life Out · Jan 2014
Properties of patient-reported outcome measures in individuals following acute whiplash injury.
The aim of this study was to assess the acceptability, reliability, validity and responsiveness of the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-12) and its preference-based derivative (SF-6D), the EQ-5D and the Neck Disability Index (NDI) in patients recovering from acute whiplash injury. ⋯ There was no evidence of differences between the EQ-5D utility measure and NDI in terms of their construct validity, discriminant validity or responsiveness in patients with acute whiplash injury. However, both demonstrated superior responsiveness to longitudinal health changes than the SF-6D.