Measurement in group interventions for women with breast cancer.

Instrumentation is a critical component of intervention research. This article discusses a review of measurement tools used in research on group interventions for women with breast cancer. The wide variety of instruments used in research studies is listed.

Adherence to zidovudine for the prevention of perinatal transmission in HIV-infected pregnant women: the impact of social network factors, side effects, and perceived treatment efficacy.

Adherence to zidovudine (ZDV) prophylaxis among 78 pregnant HIV-infected women was measured with 2 physiologic markers. Long-term adherence was measured with blood assays for macrocytosis, a clinical indicator of ZDV use; 53 women (67.9%) were adherent.

Psychologic and social sequelae of secondary lymphedema: a review.

Background: The psychological and social sequelae of secondary lymphedema (SLE) have been an underrecognized and little-researched complication of treatment for breast carcinoma. The reported incidence and prevalence of SLE varied widely (0-48%). Reported reasons for the differences are related to the lack of standard diagnostic and universal assessment criteria.

Efficacy of therapeutic group by telephone for women with breast cancer.

A pilot study was conducted to test the efficacy of a therapeutic group by telephone conference call for women with breast cancer. Sixty-six women with stage I or stage II breast cancer consented to participate in the study. Participants were randomly assigned to a usual psychosocial care or intervention group, using a permuted block method.

Maternal adherence to the zidovudine regimen for HIV-exposed infants to prevent HIV infection: a preliminary study.

Objective: To describe the extent of adherence to the recommended neonatal zidovudine (ZDV) regimen administered to infants who have been exposed to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV and to determine which maternal factors are associated with compliance.

Methods: HIV-infected women (n = 87) who were participating in a larger study of perinatal transmission at 3 inner-city New York City hospitals were interviewed 2 to 6 weeks' postpartum to assess adherence to neonatal prophylaxis, social support, social network factors, and depression. In addition, plasma samples of 45 of their infants were assayed for ZDV levels.