scholarly journals Bedside optical coherence tomography for Terson’s syndrome screening in acute subarachnoid hemorrhage: a pilot study

2019 ◽  
Vol 130 (2) ◽  
pp. 517-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ciro Ramos-Estebanez ◽  
Maryo Kohen ◽  
Jonathan Pace ◽  
Alireza Bozorgi ◽  
Sunil Manjila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Optical Coherence Tomography ◽  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Acute Phase ◽  
Depressed Mood ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Optical Coherence

OBJECTIVEApproximately 10% of patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) become permanently, legally blind. The average cost of lifetime support and unpaid taxes for each blind person amounts to approximately $900,000. This study evaluates the feasibility and potential role of bedside optical coherence tomography (OCT) in Terson’s syndrome (TS) in patients with acute SAH (aSAH) and its potential role in blindness prevention.METHODSThe authors conducted an open-label pilot study, in which 31 patients with an angiographic diagnosis of aSAH were first screened for TS with dilated funduscopy and then with OCT in the acute phase and at 6-week follow-up visits. Outpatient mood assessments (Patient Health Questionnaire–depression module, Hamilton Depression Scale), and quality of life general (NIH Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) and visual scales (25-item National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire) were measured at 1 and 6 weeks after discharge. Exclusion criteria included current or previous history of severe cataracts, severe diabetic retinopathy, severe macular degeneration, or glaucoma.RESULTSOCT identified 7 patients with TS, i.e., a 22.6% incidence in our aSAH sample: 7 in the acute phase, including a large retinal detachment that was initially missed by funduscopy and diagnosed by OCT in follow-up clinic. Dilated retinal funduscopy significantly failed to detect TS in 4 (57.1%) of these 7 cases. Intraventricular hemorrhage was significantly more common in TS cases (85.7% vs 25%). None of the participants experienced any complications from OCT examinations. Neither decreased quality of life visual scale scores nor a depressed mood correlated with objective OCT pathological findings at the 6-week follow-up after discharge. There were no significant mood differences between TS cases and controls.CONCLUSIONSOCT is the gold standard in retinal disease diagnosis. This pilot study shows that bedside OCT examination is feasible in aSAH. In this series, OCT was a safe procedure that enhanced TS detection by decreasing false-negative/inconclusive funduscopic examinations. It allows early diagnosis of macular holes and severe retinal detachments, which require acute surgical therapy to prevent legal blindness. In addition, OCT aids in ruling out potential false-positive visual deficits in individuals with a depressed mood at follow-up.

scholarly journals Personalised Follow-up Program after Acute Phase of Treatment in Oncology/Hematology Patients Towards Early Intervention, Better Care and Quality of Life Improvement: Results from Pasca Pilot Study

Blood ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 134 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 5817-5817
Author(s):  
Mauricette Michallet ◽  
Mohamad Sobh ◽  
Romain Buono ◽  
Solene Poirey ◽  
Isabela Pascu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Acute Phase ◽  
Family Doctor ◽  
Second Cancer ◽  
The Family ◽  
Life Improvement

Advances in diagnosis and treatment have helped increase cure rates for many cancers. However, the disease and its treatments are often accompanied by short-, mid- and long-term organic and psychosocial sequelae and increased risk of second cancer, adding to that, all pre-existing comorbidities, lifestyle risks and hereditary factors. At the Centre Leon Berard Cancer center, we launched a project named PASCA (Parcours de Sante au cours du Cancer) that aims at structuring and optimizing a follow-up schedule for patients suffering from breast cancer, testicular germ tumor, acute leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma, as well as patients who received hematopoietic stem cell transplantations (HSCT). The main objective of the program is the early detection and specific management of risk factors for second cancer as well as sequelae management after the acute treatment phase with the final objective of quality of life improvement. Follow-up and evaluation are done through the establishment of a multidisciplinary organic assessment, anthropometric and physical fitness, psychic and socio-professional evaluation, the aim is to establish a score for each assessment, complementary to the specific oncology and hematology monitoring, that allows later to establish a personalized and adapted sequelae management and prevention of complications that could significantly impact the patient quality of life but also compromise the optimal management of the malignant disease. Patients were referred to PASCA by the oncologist/hematologist after being discharged from the acute phase of treatment, an information sheet about the program was given as well as a package containing different questionnaires to capture information about risk factors, general health, social status, quality of life and others. At the same time a series of medical laboratory requests were ordered to get a full medical assessment. Based on the questionnaires/medical evaluation a score was given for each type of assessment. Score 0 means the patients needs only a simple follow-up, score 1 means the patient needs to be followed by the family doctor for the specific issue, and score 2 means there is a need for specialist intervention. We put together a network of internal medicine or organ specific doctors in addition to fitness-physiotherapy specialist as well as many other specialists available to intervene for patients with score 2. We started in Hematology a pilot phase that included non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL, N=27) and multiple myelomas (MM, N=27) patients, 15 (28%) females and 39 (72%) males. Median age at evaluation was 60 years (range: 56-65), all patients except 8 (all NHL) received autologous HSCT. Here we present some of the most relevant PASCA assessments with the different scores: nephrology (0: 94%, 1:6%), cardiology (0:27%, 1:63%, 2:10%), hepatology (0:49%, 1:42%, 2:9%), pneumology (0:41%, 1:39%, 2:20%), sexual (0:67%, 1:14%, 2:9%), dermatology (0:78%, 1:13%, 2:9%), pain (0:43%, 1:31%, 2:26%), gynecology (0:56%, 2:44%), endocrinology (0:67%, 1:31%, 2:2%), malnutrition (0:75%, 1:8%, 2:17%), obesity (0:54%, 1:20%, 2:26%), flexibility (0:46%, 1:27%, 2:27%), employment (0:76%, 2:24%), fatigue (0:24%, 1:2%, 2:73%), anxiety (0:56%, 1:22%, 2:22%), and depression (0:80%, 1:10%, 2:10%). In addition, a list of FACT questionnaires was collected for all patients as baseline evaluation and will be compared later during follow-up. During the PASCA consult visit, patient was informed about his different assessment results and in case of any score 1 or 2, a referral to the family doctor or a specialist was requested. Planned 6- and 12-months evaluation are ongoing to evaluate the potential improvement after PASCA program. Our results from this pilot study showed a real need for specific follow-up on the medical level but also on social/well being level that is in most of the cases given less priority when the patient is seen in oncology/hematology clinic. We noticed a significant positive feedback from patients included in this program and we expect to see a drastic improvement on the medical, psychological and social level as well as on quality of life. We are starting the full PASCA program that will include also patients with breast cancers, germ cells cancers and sarcoma. A protocol for a randomized multicentric study is in preparation and will allow to evaluate the impact and the importance of such program in patients with malignant diseases. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

scholarly journals A Double Priming Induction Regimen for Acute Myeloid Leukemia with Inferior PS Among Resource Limited Areas

Blood ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 132 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 5173-5173
Author(s):  
Stephen Liang ◽  
Siliang Chen ◽  
Xiaoli Huang ◽  
Zheyuan Qin ◽  
Sanbin Wang
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Acute Myeloid Leukemia ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Subcutaneous Injection ◽  
Myeloid Leukemia ◽  
Low Dose ◽  
Grade 3 ◽  
Acute Myeloid

Abstract The treatment options for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) under inferior performance status (i.e. senior patients, MDS transformed AML, and patients with proven invasive fungal disease) are limited. The conventional "3+7" (idarubicin plus cytarabine) induction for those patients can be either too toxic, which leads to higher mortality rate, or requires prolonged recovery time thus raise medical cost. And the delay of consolidation may compromise outcome thus cause early relapse in such patients. Giving the rationale from the designing art of CPX-351, the prolonged IV time requirement for cytarabine, as well as mini-transplantation for AML treatment, at least in part, reflects the philosophy of a longer exposure to the chemo agent can be a more effective treatment approach for leukemia. On the other hand, the D-CAG protocol, which indicated an encouraging result for elderly patients with AML, indicated effectiveness of the strategy with reduced intensity. However, the cyto-toxic effect of decitabine with standard dose (20mg/m2) could still lead to severe treatment adverse events (AEs) thus raise the need of optimization of D-CAG regimen for patients with inferior PS. When considering the low dose hypo-methylation agent (HMA) can trigger the innate immunity response, the unique effect of homoharringtonine, as well as the effectiveness of CAG, we designed this DHCAG protocol following the principle of "longer exposure, lower intensity preceded by priming" and observed an unexpected excellent outcome with high CR rate, low induction failure and treatment mortality, as well as a higher cost effective value for patients with AML, when compared to "3+7" protocol, whom under inferior PS. From March 2016 - January 2018, we initiated this pilot study and investigated the safety and efficiency of this DHCAG protocol in patients with AML under poor PS. We enrolled 25 patients and administer the regimen as followings: i) G-CSF: 5μg/kg used when WBC <20×10^9/L at day 0-14 subcutaneous injection; ii) Decitabine: 6mg/m2 at day 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 iv drip; iii) Aclarubicin: 6mg/m2 at day 1-8 iv drip; iv) Homoharringtonine: 1mg/m2 at day 9-14 iv drip ( at day 9, if WBC >1*10^9/L then increase the dosage of homoharringtonine to 2mg/m2); iv) Cytarabine:10mg/m2 q12h at day 1-14 subcutaneous injection (if WBC >20*10^9/L then increase to 100mg/m2 by 24h CIV, or 50mg/m2 q12h by subcutaneous injection). The primary end point was complete hematologic remission, defined as a bone marrow blast cells ≤5%, Neutrophils in peripheral blood ≥1.0X109 /L, hemoglobin≥90g/L, and platelets ≥100X109/L and no any evidence of extramedullary leukemic infiltration; Secondary end points included numbers of adverse events, length of hospital stay, medical costs, and quality of life as measured with the use of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - General (FACT-G) questionnaire. Among the 25 patients in the study, 23 completed the induction therapy. And 21/25 patients had a hematologic complete remission after a median time of 19 days. Once complete remission had occurred, all 21 patients received post-remission treatment for another 5 cycles of DHCAG. Median follow-up was 14 months (range, 8 to 19) by June 2018. Interestingly, regardless of grade 3-4 myelo-suppression occurred all of our patients during induction, eight patients did not experienced grade 3-4 myelo-suppression during the following cycles. The median hospital stay is 22 days. The median of total medical costs for induction was $9,815 (range, $5,053 to $16,336) vs $14,705 for "3+7" induction protocol (history control. Data unpublished). Patients resumed their usual lifestyle during post-remission therapy, and their quality of life was rated as nearly normal on the FACT-G questionnaire. At the time of the last follow-up, seven patients had had a hematologic relapse. The results of our pilot study, in which we tested a priming based, low dose and longer exposure in 25 patients with AML under poor PS, showed that the treatment was safe, effective, and economical. A prospective multicenter, randomized trial comparing DHCAG with IA is now under way in China. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

scholarly journals A Novel Digital Patient-Reported Outcome Platform for Head and Neck Oncology Patients–-A Pilot Study

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. CMENT.S40219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria K. Peltola ◽  
Joel S. Lehikoinen ◽  
Lauri T. Sippola ◽  
Kauko Saarilahti ◽  
Antti A. Mäkitie
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Head And Neck ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Patient Reported Outcome ◽  
Patient Reported

Introduction The patient's role in toxicity reporting is increasingly acknowledged. There is also a need for developing modern communication methods between the patient and the medical personnel. Furthermore, the increasing number of head and neck cancer (HNC) patients is reflected in the volume of treatment follow-up visits, which remains a challenge for the health care. Electronic patient-reported outcome (ePRO) measures may provide a cost-efficient way to organize follow-up for cancer patients. Materials and Methods We tested a novel ePRO application called Kaiku®, which enables real-time, online collection of patient-reported outcomes, such as side effects caused by treatment and quality of life. We conducted a pilot study to assess the suitability of Kaiku® for HNC patients at the Department of Oncology, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland. Patients used Kaiku® during and one month after radiotherapy to report treatment-related side effects and quality of life. Two physicians and a nurse performed the practical electronic communication part of the study. Results Five of the nine patients agreed to participate in the study: three of them had local early-stage larynx cancer (T2N0, T1aN0, and T2N0) and the remaining two patients had early-stage base of tongue cancer (T2N0 and T1N2b). The degree of side effects reported by the patients via Kaiku® ranged from mild to life threatening. The number of outcome data points on patients' progress was significantly increased, which resulted in a better follow-up and improved communication between the patient and the care team. Conclusions Kaiku® seems to be a suitable tool to monitor side effects and quality of life during and after radiotherapy among HNC patients. Kaiku® and similar tools could be useful in organizing a cost-effective follow-up process for HNC patients. We recommend conducting a larger study to further assess the impact of an ePRO solution in routine clinical practice. • ePRO solutions may aid in the follow-up for cancer patients. • They seem suitable to monitor, for example, side effects and quality of life. • These systems ensure fast patient-driven reporting.

The Potential Role of Optical Coherence Tomography in the Evaluation of Vulnerable Carotid Atheromatous Plaques: A Pilot Study

2006 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 1039-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vikramaditya Prabhudesai ◽  
Cordelia Phelan ◽  
Ying Yang ◽  
Ruikang K. Wang ◽  
Mark G. Cowling
Keyword(s):  
Optical Coherence Tomography ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Optical Coherence ◽  
Atheromatous Plaques

scholarly journals Long-term Neuropsychiatric and Neuropsychological Sequelae of Endovascularly Treated Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (11) ◽  
pp. 706
Author(s):  
Lídia Sousa ◽  
Ana Antunes ◽  
Tiago Mendes ◽  
Sofia Reimão ◽  
Lia Lucas Neto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Symptoms ◽  
Health Related Quality ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related

Introduction: There is limited evidence regarding long-term outcomes of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage survivors. Most follow-up programs are relatively short and focused on physical functions. Endovascular aneurysmal embolization enables recovery of normal vascular architecture. However, there is growing evidence that neuropsychological and behavior sequelae can significantly impact the lives of these patients, even when treatment is successful. In this study, we reviewed cognition, psychiatric and neuropsychological symptoms, global functionality, and health-related quality of life 10 to 12 years after an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.Material and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was carried out in a university hospital. All cases of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage admitted between January 2004 and December 2006 and endovascularly treated were reviewed. Participants underwent a neuropsychological evaluation and a clinical interview with a psychiatrist.Results: Fourteen patients participated in the study. Almost 70% (n = 10) showed cognitive impairment; in more than 40% (n = 6) of the subjects, significant symptoms of anxiety were identified, and 35% (n = 5) were classified as having clinical depression. Relevant posttraumatic symptoms were reported by more than 70% (n = 10) of patients, and almost 30% (n = 4) showed other moderate neuropsychiatric symptoms. Overall, health-related quality of life was impaired, and personality changes were frequently reported by the participants and their relatives.Discussion: A significant prevalence of ongoing deficits in high-level functioning and reduced health-related quality of life were observed in a sample of young and professionally active individuals that were successfully treated and discharged from follow-up consultations.Conclusion: There is a need for better follow-up strategies, targeting more subtle deficits and psychological symptoms after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

scholarly journals Assessing the impact of care farms on quality of life and offending: a pilot study among probation service users in England

BMJ Open ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. e019296 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Elsey ◽  
Tracey Farragher ◽  
Sandy Tubeuf ◽  
Rachel Bragg ◽  
Marjolein Elings ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Social Care ◽  
Recruitment And Retention ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
Probation Service ◽  
Assess Quality ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesTo assess the feasibility of conducting a cost-effectiveness study of using care farms (CFs) to improve quality of life and reduce reoffending among offenders undertaking community orders (COs). To pilot questionnaires to assess quality of life, connection to nature, lifestyle behaviours, health and social-care use. To assess recruitment and retention at 6 months and feasibility of data linkage to Police National Computer (PNC) reconvictions data and data held by probation services.DesignPilot study using questionnaires to assess quality of life, individually linked to police and probation data.SettingThe pilot study was conducted in three probation service regions in England. Each site included a CF and at least one comparator CO project. CFs are working farms used with a range of clients, including offenders, for therapeutic purposes. The three CFs included one aquaponics and horticulture social enterprise, a religious charity focusing on horticulture and a family-run cattle farm. Comparator projects included sorting secondhand clothes and activities to address alcohol misuse and anger management.ParticipantsWe recruited 134 adults (over 18) serving COs in England, 29% female.Results52% of participants completed follow-up questionnaires. Privatisation of UK probation trusts in 2014 negatively impacted on recruitment and retention. Linkage to PNC data was a more successful means of follow-up, with 90% consenting to access their probation and PNC data. Collection of health and social-care costs and quality-adjusted life year derivation were feasible. Propensity score adjustment provided a viable comparison method despite differences between comparators. We found worse health and higher reoffending risk among CF participants due to allocation of challenging offenders to CFs, making risk of reoffending a confounder.ConclusionsRecruitment would be feasible in a more stable probation environment. Follow-up was challenging; however, assessing reconvictions from PNC data is feasible and a potential primary outcome for future studies.

scholarly journals Shifting palliative care paradigm in primary care from better death to better end-of-life: a Swiss pilot study

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johanna Sommer ◽  
Christopher Chung ◽  
Dagmar M. Haller ◽  
Sophie Pautex
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Primary Care ◽  
Palliative Care ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Advanced Cancer Patients

Abstract Background Patients suffering from advanced cancer often loose contact with their primary care physician (PCP) during oncologic treatment and palliative care is introduced very late. The aim of this pilot study was to test the feasibility and procedures for a randomized trial of an intervention to teach PCPs a palliative care approach and communication skills to improve advanced cancer patients’ quality of life. Methods Observational pilot study in 5 steps. 1) Recruitment of PCPs. 2) Intervention: training on palliative care competencies and communication skills addressing end-of-life issues. 3) Recruitment of advanced cancer patients by PCPs. 4) Patients follow-up by PCPs, and assessment of their quality of life by a research assistant 5) Feedback from PCPs using a semi-structured focus group and three individual interviews with qualitative deductive theme analysis. Results Eight PCPs were trained. Patient recruitment was a challenge for PCPs who feared to impose additional loads on their patients. PCPs became more conscious of their role and responsibility during oncologic treatments and felt empowered to take a more active role picking up patient’s cues and addressing advance directives. They developed interprofessional collaborations for advance care planning. Overall, they discovered the role to help patients to make decisions for a better end-of-life. Conclusions While the intervention was acceptable to PCPs, recruitment was a challenge and a follow up trial was not deemed feasible using the current design but PCPs reported a change in paradigm about palliative care. They moved from a focus on helping patients to die better, to a new role helping patients to define the conditions for a better end-of-life. Trial registration The ethics committee of the canton of Geneva approved the study (2018–00077 Pilot Study) in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

scholarly journals Long COVID In Adults at 12 Months After Mild-to-Moderate SARS-CoV-2 Infection

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Boscolo-Rizzo ◽  
Francesco Guida ◽  
Jerry Polesel ◽  
Alberto Vito Marcuzzo ◽  
Vincenzo Capriotti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Prospective Study ◽  
Acute Phase ◽  
Muscle Pain ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
Shortness Of Breath ◽  
Moderate Disease ◽  
Scale Scores

AbstractBackgroundIn a proportion of patients recovered from the acute COVID-19 phase, a variable range of symptoms has been observed to persist for at least 6-months.ObjectivesThe main aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of COVID-related symptoms 12-months after the onset of mild-to-moderate disease.MethodsProspective study based on structured questionnaires and additional outcomes.Results304/354 patients completing the survey at baseline also completed the follow-up interview (85.9%; median [range] age, 47 [18-76] years; 185 [60.9%] women). Persistence of at least one symptom at 12-months follow-up was reported by 161 patients (53.0%). The most commonly reported symptom of long COVID was felt tired (n=83, 27.3%), followed by smell or taste impairment (n=67, 22.0%), shortness of breath (n=39, 12.8%) and muscle pain (n=28, 9.2%). Being females (OR=1.64; 95% CI: 1.00-2.70), aged between 40-54 (OR=1.92; 95% CI: 1.07-3.44), having a BMI ≥25 (OR=1.67; 95% CI: 1.00-2.78), and experiencing more symptoms during the acute phase of the disease (OR=8.71 for ≥8 symptoms; 95% CI: 2.73-27.76) were associated with long COVID. Persistence of symptoms showed a significant impact on quality of life (p<0.0001) and depression scale scores (p=0.0102).ConclusionMore than half of patients with previous mild-to-moderate symptomatic COVID-19 complained the persistence of at least one symptom 12-months after the onset of the illness.

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