Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management Nurses
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Comparative Study
A study on the correlation between the nurses' and patients' postoperative pain assessments.
In this research, the correlation of assessment of postoperative pain between nurses and their clients is investigated. The aim of the research was to investigate whether or not the nurses can evaluate the pain that clients have in the postoperative process in the same sense as clients do and to examine personal factors that affect this evaluation. The descriptive and comparative research was undertaken between January 2008 and April 2008 in the clinics of Çukurova University Balcalı Hospital. ⋯ At the end of the research, the correlation between the patient scores and the nurse scores that were gathered from first, second, third, and fourth parts of the pain evaluation documents were observed: part 1, Γ = 290, p = .063; part 3/1-2, Γ = 380, p = .008, 3/1; part 3, Γ = 357, p = .007; part 3/2, Γ = 209, p = .031; part 4, Γ = 346, p < .001. The congruity points obtained from the statistical data contrast with the literature, showing that the nurses and the patients evaluated the postoperative pain in the same sense. Pain evaluation investigations are recommended to be done with the attendance of more nurses and patients, and their results should be shared with all nurses.
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Comparative Study Clinical Trial
The effects of self-pain management on the intensity of pain and pain management methods in arthritic patients.
The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of pain management education on the intensity of pain and frequency of utilization of pain management methods in two groups of patients with arthritis of different pathogenesis and clinical features, and to compare whether a significant difference existed between the two groups. The study was carried out between September 2007 and June 2008 on 30 female patients with gonarthrosis and 30 female patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) followed at the rheumatology outpatient clinic of a university hospital. Data on sociodemographic characteristics and those related with the illness were collected using a special survey. ⋯ After education, significant improvements in pain intensity scores compared with baseline scores were observed in both groups (p < .05), and there was no significant difference between the RA and gonarthrosis groups. Among the various pain management methods, the education program led to significantly more utilization of massaging the painful area, exercising, and using complementary methods to control stress in both groups of patients, and there was no significant difference between the groups. In conclusion, the pain management education given in this study alleviated the intensity of pain and significantly increased the use of some pain management methods in both gonarthrosis and RA cases.
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This study aimed to examine nursing ward managers' perceptions of pain prevalence among older residents and the strategies of pain management at the Health Service Facilities for the Elderly Requiring Care (HSFERC) in Japan and to investigate the factors related to the prevalence. Nursing ward managers in 3,644 HSFERC were asked to participate in this study. Questionnaires were sent to them regarding pain prevalence among the older residents in their wards, their provisions for pain care, and other pain management strategies. ⋯ The ward managers' perceptions regarding pain prevalence varied; the perceived pain rates were possibly lower than the actual percentages. Insufficient pain management strategies at the HSFERC were also suggested. An appropriate pain management strategy for Japanese aged care and its dissemination are urgently required.
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There is a curious and paradoxic phenomenon, reliably demonstrated in animal models, that consists of an increased sensitivity to pain that is apparently induced by the very opioid drugs used to ameliorate the pain. This phenomenon is termed "opioid-induced hyperalgesia." Whether opioid-induced hyperalgesia occurs in humans, and, if so, to what extent and consequence, is far less established. This is a critical question for attempting to treat pain. ⋯ It would be to decrease, rather than increase, the dose of opioid. We review the evidence, particularly the clinical evidence, about opioid-induced hyperalgesia and the postulated mechanisms. We conclude that given the clinical ramifications, opioid-induced hyperalgesia is one of the most understudied important aspects of opioid research.
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The purpose of this study was to evaluate adherence to prescribed opioids in Taiwanese oncology outpatients and to examine the associations between various demographic and medical characteristics and prescribed opioids adherence. Ninety-two outpatients who had taken prescribed opioid analgesics for cancer-related pain at least once in the past week participated in this study. Patients were asked to recall the dose of each opioid analgesic that they had taken in the past 24 hours. ⋯ Findings of this study suggest that to improve pain control, efforts to promote patients' opioid regimen adherence should be given high priority. Clinicians should be particularly aware that there may be some gender difference in adherence to prescribed opioid analgesics. There is a need for better programmatic efforts to improve analgesic adherence.