Introduction: Cases of nitrous oxide (NO)-induced myeloneuropathy are increasing at UK hospitals. At our centre, a dedicated ambulatory care pathway, endorsed nationally, was established to treat and monitor patients with NO-myeloneuropathy in 2021 and refined through three audit cycles. We analysed the outcomes of patients on this pathway to better understand factors associated with non-engagement. Alongside, a novel approach using WhatsApp for questionnaire delivery was trialled in an attempt to improve engagement with treatment.
Methods: Patients on the NO ambulatory care pathway were identified from MDT meeting lists from 9 September 2022 to 25 April 2023. Clinical data were collected via electronic clinical records, including the most recent neurological examination and reason for discharge from the pathway. Patients identified from MDT lists from 27 January 2023 to 14 March 2023 were approached to participate in weekly 12-item surveys, delivered via WhatsApp. This was approved as a service development project with approval for WhatsApp use given by the chief clinical information officer.
Results: 35/56 (62.5%) patients were discharged from ambulatory care due to non-attendance and 17/56 (30.4%) completed their treatment course. The median time from initial presentation to discharge was 49 days. 24/40 (60.0%) of patients with a final neurological examination documented had a residual deficit, with objective sensory deficits most common. 12 patients were approached to receive weekly questionnaires via WhatsApp. 5/8 who expressed interest returned a consent form. All participants were withdrawn due to non-response or participant choice. 1/5 returned more than two surveys.
Conclusion: Despite poor participation in surveys delivered via WhatsApp, novel approaches are needed to improve engagement with patients on the NO ambulatory care pathway.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11149123 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjno-2024-000737 | DOI Listing |
BMC Palliat Care
December 2024
The Palliative Care Center, Päijät-Häme Wellbeing Services County, Lahti, Finland.
Background: Studies show that hospital deaths bring significant health care costs, and the involvement of specialized palliative care can help to reduce these costs. The aim of this retrospective registry-based study was to evaluate end-of-life hospital costs in patients dying in a university hospital oncology ward, with or without specialized palliative outpatient clinic contact at any timepoint.
Methods: The study population consists of all patients who died in the Kuopio University Hospital oncology ward in the years 2012-2018 (n = 457).
BMC Cardiovasc Disord
December 2024
School of Psychology, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
Background: Blood pressure (BP) control following stroke is important but currently sub-optimal. This trial aimed to determine whether self-monitoring of hypertension with telemonitoring and a treatment escalation protocol, results in lower BP than usual care in people with previous stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA).
Methods: Unblinded randomised controlled trial, comparing a BP telemonitoring-based intervention with control (usual care) for hypertension management in 12 primary care practices in England.
JAMA Netw Open
December 2024
Department of Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
Importance: The number of older adults in long-term correctional facilities (prisons) has increased rapidly in recent years. The cognitive and functional status of this population is not well understood due to limitations in the availability of longitudinal data.
Objective: To comparatively examine the prevalence and disability status of the population of adults 55 years and older in prisons and adults living in community settings for a 14-year period (2008-2022).
JAMA Netw Open
December 2024
Department of Epidemiology and Health Care Atlas, Central Research Institute of Ambulatory Health Care, Berlin, Germany.
Importance: A growing body of literature suggests the presence of a prodromal period with nonspecific signs and symptoms before onset of multiple sclerosis (MS).
Objective: To systematically assess diseases and symptoms diagnosed in the 5 years before a first MS- or central nervous system (CNS) demyelinating disease-related diagnostic code in pediatric patients compared with controls without MS and controls with another immune-mediated disorder, juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).
Design, Setting, And Participants: This population-based, matched case-control study included children and adolescents (aged <18 years) in Germany with statutory health insurance from January 2010 to December 2020.
Am J Kidney Dis
December 2024
Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; VA Puget Sound Healthcare System, Seattle, Washington.
Historically, the paradigm for all maladies was associated with an imbalance of the 4 humors: blood, black bile, yellow bile, and phlegm. Although our understanding of disease has evolved significantly since the time of Hippocrates, a similar cornerstone of inpatient and ambulatory care involves understanding and correcting imbalances of volume. The kidneys are the principal organs controlling extracellular volume, capable of both sensing and altering salt retention through multiple redundant pathways, including the sympathetic nervous system and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!