Introduction: The demand for transplanted organs outweighs the supply and intensifies the need to improve care for donor families. Studies have shown inadequate care by hospital staff can increase posttraumatic stress disorder and complicated grief in these families but putting solutions into practice remains slow.
Objective: This systematic review identified factors that relieve or contribute to distress for deceased organ donor families in the time since the decision to donate. Additionally, it provides insights into potential improvements at public health, educational, and health system levels to address these deficiencies.
Methods: Search terms included organ don*, famil* or relati*, family-centered, grief, and experience*. The search covered original research articles, published in English, from 2014 to July 2021.
Results: Four key themes emerged among the studies. (a) Understanding factors that affect the emotional aftermath can help staff prevent posttraumatic stress disorder and complicated grief. (b) Improving communication by hospital staff includes: avoiding medical jargon, providing adequate audio and visual explanations, and understanding that the next of kin is struggling to comprehend the tragedy and the information they are being told. (c) End-of-life care such as memory making, bringing in palliative care resources, and parting ceremonies can assist with familial coping as well as staff interactions. (d) Families want more support in the months and years after the donation decision.
Discussion: Changes at multiple levels can improve the quality of care for families whose relative gave the gift of life, but more research and translation into practice are needed.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/15269248221087429 | DOI Listing |
Front Biosci (Landmark Ed)
January 2025
Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, 41500 Larissa, Greece.
Background: Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1α) and its related vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may play a significant role in atherosclerosis and their targeting is a strategic approach that may affect multiple pathways influencing disease progression. This study aimed to perform a systematic review to reveal current evidence on the role of HIF-1α and VEGF immunophenotypes with other prognostic markers as potential biomarkers of atherosclerosis prognosis and treatment efficacy.
Methods: We performed a systematic review of the current literature to explore the role of HIF-1α and VEGF protein expression along with the relation to the prognosis and therapeutic strategies of atherosclerosis.
Br J Hosp Med (Lond)
January 2025
Department of Pediatrics, Taizhou Women and Children's Hospital, Taizhou, Zhejiang, China.
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common chronic inflammatory skin disorder globally. Crisaborole, a nonsteroidal topical phosphodiesterase 4 inhibitor (PDE4i), has been utilized in treating AD. Crisaborole regulates the production of inflammatory cytokines, which are usually overactive among AD patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Integr Neurosci
January 2025
Department of Child Health, Qingdao Huangdao District Central Hospital, 266555 Qingdao, Shandong, China.
Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been reported to confer an increased risk of natural premature death. Telomere erosion caused by oxidative stress is a common consequence in age-related diseases. However, whether telomere length (TL) and oxidative indicators are significantly changed in ASD patients compared with controls remains controversial.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Integr Neurosci
January 2025
Department of Radiology, Huzhou Central Hospital, The Affiliated Central Hospital of Huzhou University, 313000 Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Background: Glioma is the most common malignancy in the central nervous system. Even with optimal therapies, glioblastoma (the most aggressive form of glioma) is incurable, with only 26.5% of patients having a 2-year survival rate.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Endovasc Ther
January 2025
Department of Vascular Surgery, Swiss Aortic Center Bern, Inselspital, University Hospital of Bern, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Purpose: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the outcomes of Anaconda fenestrated endograft for the treatment of complex abdominal aortic aneurysms (cAAA).
Material And Methods: A systematic search of all the literature reported until May 2024 was performed according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. The pooled 30-day mortality rate, technical success rate, reintervention rate as well as bridging stent occlusion rate, and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using fixed or random effect methods.
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