A comparison of alternative ranking methods in two-stage clinical trials with multiple interventions: An application to the anxiolysis for laceration repair in children trial.

Background/aims: Multi-arm, multi-stage trials frequently include a standard care to which all interventions are compared. This may increase costs and hinders comparisons among the experimental arms. Furthermore, the standard care may not be evident, particularly when there is a large variation in standard practice.

Ultrasound gel minimizes third body debris with partial hardware removal in joint arthroplasty.

Hundreds of thousands of revision surgeries for hip, knee, and shoulder joint arthroplasties are now performed worldwide annually. Partial removal of hardware during some types of revision surgeries may create significant amounts of third body metal, polymer, or bone cement debris. Retained debris may lead to a variety of negative health effects including damage to the joint replacement.

Communicating with head and neck cancer patients.

Background: Head and neck cancer is only 3 to 5% of all the cancers in the United States. The disease causes major changes in the appearance and functional ability of patients.

Purpose: To explore how caregivers communicate with head and neck cancer patients who have impaired communication abilities from the disease and from treatment.

Physician orders for life-sustaining treatment form: honoring end-of-life directives for nursing home residents.

Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) form provides choices about end-of-life care and gives these choices the power of physician orders. The POLST form assures end-of-life choices can be implemented in all settings, from the home through the health-care continuum. The use of the POLST form was evaluated in a pilot study in nursing homes in two eastern Washington counties.

Optimizing the functionality of clients with age-related macular degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is a major cause of severe vision loss and blindness among older people. This condition is progressive, incurable, and significantly compromises central vision. Rehabilitation nurses have a pivotal role in the assessment and management of clients with ARMD.