Nausea exacerbates symptom burden, quality of life, and functioning in adolescents with functional abdominal pain disorders

2019 ◽  
pp. e13595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katja Kovacic ◽  
Prasanna K. Kapavarapu ◽  
Manu R. Sood ◽  
B U. K. Li ◽  
Melodee Nugent ◽  
...  
2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 1511-1527 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rubén Nieto ◽  
Mercè Boixadós ◽  
Eulàlia Hernández ◽  
Imma Beneitez ◽  
Anna Huguet ◽  
...  

The main objective of this study was to preliminary explore the effects of DARWeb on different outcomes. A Quasi-experimental, one-group, pretest–posttest design was used. Parents and children were asked to complete questionnaires and questions (separately) about quality of life, abdominal pain severity, and satisfaction. Semi-structured interviews with families were also performed. This study focuses on 17 families. Results showed that parent’s ratings of children’s abdominal pain severity were significantly lower after finishing the intervention and at the 3-month follow-up, and quality of life scores had increased significantly after 3 months. From children’s ratings, mean abdominal pain severity scores were significantly lower after the intervention compared to the preintervention assessment. Both parents and children were quite satisfied with the intervention. In qualitative interviews, families suggested that DARWeb helped them to give less importance to pain and to learn coping strategies. In conclusion, this study showed the potential usefulness of DARWeb for children with functional abdominal pain and for their parents.


2021 ◽  
pp. 026921632199472
Author(s):  
Natalia Salamanca-Balen ◽  
Thomas V Merluzzi ◽  
Man Chen

Background: The concept of hope is an important theme in chronic illness and palliative care and has been associated with increased psycho-spiritual well-being and quality of life. Psycho-spiritual interventions have been described in this population, but no systematic review of hope-enhancing interventions or hopelessness-reducing interventions has been conducted for persons with palliative care diseases. Aim: To describe and assess the effectiveness of interventions in palliative care that measure hope and/or hopelessness as an outcome. Design: This systematic review and meta-analysis was pre-registered (Prospero ID: CRD42019119956). Data sources: Electronic databases, journals, and references were searched. We used the Cochrane criteria to assess the risk of bias within studies. Results: Thirty-five studies (24 randomized controlled trials, 5 quasi-experimental, 6 pre-post studies) involving a total of 3296 palliative care patients were included. Compared with usual/standard cancer care alone, interventions significantly increased hope levels at a medium effect size ( g = 0.61, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.28–0.93) but did not significantly reduce hopelessness ( g = −0.08, 95% CI = −0.18 to 0.02). It was found that interventions significantly increase spirituality ( g = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.02–1.37) and decrease depression ( g = −0.29, 95% CI = −0.51 to −0.07), but had no significant effect over anxiety, quality of life, and symptom burden. Overall, quality of evidence across the included studies was rated as low. Conclusions: Evidence suggests that interventions can be effective in increasing hope in palliative care patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 175628482199358
Author(s):  
Nikita Hanning ◽  
Adam L. Edwinson ◽  
Hannah Ceuleers ◽  
Stephanie A. Peters ◽  
Joris G. De Man ◽  
...  

Background and Aim: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a complex and heterogeneous disorder. Sensory, motor and barrier dysfunctions are the key physiological endophenotypes of IBS. Our aim is to review studies evaluating barrier dysfunction in adults and children with IBS, as well as to link those changes with IBS symptomatology and quality of life. Methods: A comprehensive and systematic review of multiple databases was performed up to March 2020 to identify studies comparing intestinal permeability in IBS patients with healthy controls. Both in vivo and in vitro studies were considered. Results: We identified 66 studies, of which 27 used intestinal probes to quantify barrier function. The prevalence of barrier dysfunction differed between PI-IBS (17–50%), IBS-D (37–62%) and IBS-C (4–25%). At a group level, permeability was increased compared with healthy controls in IBS-D (9/13 studies) and PI-IBS (4/4 studies), but only a minority of IBS-C (2/7 studies) and not in the only IBS-M study. All four studies in children with IBS demonstrated loss of barrier function. A heterogeneous set of tight junction genes were found to be altered in small and large intestines of adults with IBS, but these have not been evaluated in children. Positive associations were identified between barrier dysfunction and bowel disturbances (6/9 studies), abdominal pain (9/13 studies), overall symptom severity (1/6 studies), depression and anxiety (1/1 study) and quality of life (1/4 studies). Fecal slurry or supernatants of IBS patients were found to induce barrier disruption in animal models (5/6 studies). Conclusions: Barrier dysfunction is present in a significant proportion of adult and all pediatric IBS studies, especially in the IBS-D and PI-IBS subtype. The majority of studies indicated a positive association between loss of barrier function and symptoms such as abdominal pain and changes in the bowel function.


BMC Cancer ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah F. Christensen ◽  
Robyn M. Scherber ◽  
Gina L. Mazza ◽  
Amylou C. Dueck ◽  
Nana Brochmann ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Patients with Philadelphia-negative Myeloproliferative Neoplasms (MPN) suffer from numerous symptoms and decreased quality of life. Smoking is associated with an increased symptom burden in several malignancies. The aim of this study was to analyze the association between smoking and MPN-related symptom burden and explore MPN patients’ opinions on smoking. Methods A total of 435 patients with MPN participated in a cross-sectional internet-based survey developed by the Mayo Clinic and the Myeloproliferative Neoplasm Quality of Life Group. Patients reported their demographics, disease characteristics, tobacco use, and opinions on tobacco use. In addition, MPN-related symptoms were reported via the validated 10-item version of the Myeloproliferative Neoplasms Symptom Assessment Form. Results Current/former smokers reported worse fatigue (mean severity 5.6 vs. 5.0, p = 0.02) and inactivity (mean severity 4.0 vs. 3.4, p = 0.03) than never smokers. Moreover, current/former smokers more frequently experienced early satiety (68.5% vs. 58.3%, p = 0.03), inactivity (79.9% vs. 71.1%, p = 0.04), and concentration difficulties (82.1% vs. 73.1%, p = 0.04). Although not significant, a higher total symptom burden was observed for current/former smokers (mean 30.4 vs. 27.0, p = 0.07). Accordingly, overall quality of life was significantly better among never smokers than current/former smokers (mean 3.5 vs. 3.9, p = 0.03). Only 43.2% of the current/former smokers reported having discussed tobacco use with their physician, and 17.5% did not believe smoking increased the risk of thrombosis. Conclusion The current study suggests that smoking may be associated with increased prevalence and severity of MPN symptoms and underscores the need to enhance patient education and address tobacco use in the care of MPN patients.


Oncology ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 133-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Cella ◽  
Cindy J. Nowinski ◽  
Olga Frankfurt

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e20044-e20044
Author(s):  
Onyemaechi Okolo ◽  
Betsy C. Wertheim ◽  
Ashley Larsen ◽  
Nathan W. Sweeney ◽  
Krisstina L. Gowin

e20044 Background: Recent advancements in the treatment of plasma cell disorders (PCD) have led to a revolution in treatment options. Despite improved outcomes, patients have unmet symptom management needs. Integrative medicine (IM) is a method for addressing symptoms in cancer, but its use and efficacy is poorly defined in PCD patients. This analysis describes the utilization of IM among myeloma patients and explores associations with symptom burden. Methods: For 3 months, a 70-question online survey was hosted on HealthTree.org, an online resource for myeloma patients and researchers created by the HealthTree Foundation. The survey included questions about demographics, PCD type, disease stage, complementary practice use, PHQ-2 score (depression screen), and quality of life (sum of 6 interference items; possible score range 0-6). Mean outcome values were compared between IM users and non-users using two-sample t-tests. Proportions of supplement users and IM users were compared between patients currently on myeloma-specific treatment and patients not currently on treatment using chi-square tests. Results: Of 195 total respondents, 17 were excluded for not completing the survey section on IM practices. Median age range was 60-69 years old, 61% were female, 91% were non-Hispanic white, and 57% were overweight or obese. Plasma cell subtypes were active myeloma (81%), smoldering myeloma (12%), MGUS (3%), amyloidosis (2%), and plasmacytoma (1%), and 72% of patients were currently on cancer-specific treatment. On a scale of 1-10 (1=very uncomfortable; 10=very comfortable), patients reported a mean score of 3.7 when discussing IM therapies with their oncologist. The top 10 IM modalities reported were aerobic exercise (83%), nutrition (67%), natural products (60%), strength exercise (52%), support groups (48%), breathing exercises (44%), meditation (42%), yoga (40%), mindfulness-based stress reduction (38%), and massage (38%). Those who participated in meditation had significantly higher PHQ-2 scores (worse depression) than non-participants (1.1 vs. 0.8; p=0.05). Users of support groups (3.4 vs. 2.7; p=0.04), medicinal marijuana (4.0 vs. 2.9; p=0.03), or vitamin C (3.6 vs. 2.7; p=0.01) reported higher mean interference (worse quality of life) than non-users. Compared to patients currently on cancer treatment for PCD, untreated patients were significantly more likely to use curcumin (58% vs. 41%; p=0.04) or green tea (44% vs. 17%; p<0.001), were less likely to use medicinal marijuana (6% vs. 18%; p=0.05), and reported significantly lower fatigue (p=0.02). Conclusions: This international survey-based analysis reveals that most patients participated in IM modalities, though felt uncomfortable discussing them with their oncologist. It is unclear if the use of some IM modalities were due to symptom burden or lead to higher symptom burden. This study provides a foundation in the understanding of IM use in PCD, but more research is needed to evaluate its efficacy.


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