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Functional and social long-term results after free tissue transfer to the lower extremity.

We report the long-term social and functional results in 53 patients receiving free tissue transfer after trauma to the lower extremity. The results are compared with those of a matched group of patients receiving primary amputation. The microsurgically treated patients had significantly more complaints over pain during walk (p = 0.02) and edema (p < 0.00005). Regarding social results, no significant differences between the two groups were found. Time until surgery, infection, or bone defect before free flap surgery did not alter the overall results significantly. It is concluded that the long-term functional and social results after free tissue transfer are almost the same as those achieved after simple amputation. Because the median time until free flap surgery in this series was 158 days, early limb-saving procedures could possibly improve the long-term results.

Adult↗

Allocation of resources between smoking cessation methods and lovastatin treatment of hypercholesterolaemia: based on cost effectiveness and the social welfare function.

OBJECTIVE: To use the social welfare function to decide on allocation of resources between smoking cessation methods and lovastatin treatment of hypercholesterolaemia for the primary prevention of coronary heart disease. METHOD: Three smoking cessation therapies (medical advice, nicotine gum and nicotine patch) were considered in smokers, and lovastatin 20, 40 and 80 mg/day was considered in individuals with hypercholesterolaemia (total cholesterol > 7.24 mmol/L [> 270 mg/dL]). Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to obtain parameter epsilon determining the exact form of the social welfare function in Catalonia, Spain. The preferable strategy was to give higher priority to the intervention that used one smoking cessation method and lovastatin treatment for hypercholesterolaemia and that was associated with a value of epsilon consistent with the social welfare function. RESULTS: A value of 1.58 (95% CI: 0.75-2.84) was obtained for parameter epsilon of the social welfare function, showing a nonutilitarian form. A higher priority should be given, based on the social welfare function, to the intervention using medical advice for smoking cessation and lovastatin 20-80 mg/day for hypercholesterolaemia, since this approach was associated with epsilon values of 2.8-2.9 in men and 1.8-2.4 in women, while interventions using nicotine substitution therapies were associated with epsilon values of < 0.9 in men and < 0.4 in women. The cost of treating all smokers and individuals with hypercholesterolaemia was 35% lower using medical advice for smoking cessation and lovastatin 20 mg/day, which was associated with epsilon values of 2.9 in men and 2.4 in women, than using a utilitarian solution consisting of nicotine patches for smoking cessation and lovastatin 20 mg/day. CONCLUSION: These results show that higher priority should be given to lovastatin treatment of hypercholesterolaemia than to nicotine substitution treatments for smoking cessation, based on cost effectiveness and the social welfare function. The study also showed the applicability of this method to decisions about resource allocation between competing treatments when society has a nonutilitarian social welfare function.

Administration, Cutaneous↗

The usefulness of evaluative outcome measures in patients with multiple sclerosis.

To select the most useful evaluative outcome measures for early multiple sclerosis, we included 156 recently diagnosed patients in a 3-year follow-up study, and assessed them on 23 outcome measures in the domains of disease-specific outcomes, physical functioning, mental health, social functioning and general health. A global rating scale (GRS) and the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) were used as external criteria to determine the minimally important change (MIC) for each outcome measure. Subsequently, we determined whether the outcome measures could detect their MIC reliably. From these, per domain the outcome measure that was found to be most sensitive to changes (responsive) was identified. At group level, 11 outcomes of the domains of physical functioning, mental health, social functioning and general health could reliably detect the MIC. Of these 11, the most responsive measures per domain were the Medical Outcome Study 36 Short Form sub-scale physical functioning (SF36pf), the Disability and Impact Profile (DIP) sub-scale psychological, the Rehabilitation Activities Profile sub-scale occupation (RAPocc) and the SF36 sub-scale health, respectively. Overall, the most responsive measures were the SF36pf and the RAPocc. In individual patients, none of the measures could reliably detect the MIC. In sum, in the early stages of multiple sclerosis the most useful evaluative outcome measures for research are the SF36pf (physical functioning) and the RAPocc (social functioning).

Activities of Daily Living↗

Functional autonomy measurement system: development of a social subscale.

The purpose of this study was to develop a subscale assessing social functioning for the functional autonomy measurement system (SMAF). The development of this new dimension was based on consultations (focus groups and nominal groups) of experts from different health care disciplines in Quebec, Canada, and France. Two interrater reliability studies were carried out with older people presenting a loss of functional autonomy and living either in an institution or at home. With the focus groups, the experts clarified the definition of social functioning and identified the factors involved. The nominal groups were used to construct a subscale composed of six items. The results of the first interrater reliability study showed a mean agreement percentage of 60% for the subscale and an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.70 (CI: 0.57-0.80). The results of the second interrater reliability study showed higher coefficients with an agreement percentage of 74% for the subscale and an ICC of 0.83 (CI: 0.61-0.93). These preliminary results demonstrate that the new social functioning subscale has good reliability, but more studies are needed to show its validity. The new SMAF, including the social functioning subscale, should help clinicians and researchers to obtain a comprehensive profile of functional autonomy. It could also contribute to the improvement of health care for older people.

Aged↗

The impact of bronchiectasis associated to sinonasal disease on quality of life.

BACKGROUND: Bronchiectasis (BQs) is an uncommon disease with the potential to cause devastating complications. All patients with BQs have cough and chronic sputum production that may have a great impact on patient's quality of life. Upper airway symptoms are also frequent in patients with BQs. Associations between upper and lower airways diseases have been demonstrated in allergic rhinitis and asthma, nasal polyposis and asthma, chronic obstructive lung disease and chronic rhinosinusitis. OBJECTIVE: (1) To investigate the impact of bronchiectasis and nasal symptoms on quality of life. (2) To evaluate the added impact of nasal polyposis on quality of life in patients with BQs. METHODS: Sixty patients with bronchiectasis and upper airway symptoms were included. Patients were evaluated for nasal symptoms, nasal polyp size by endoscopy, and quality of life using the SF-36 generic questionnaire. RESULTS: In comparison with the Spanish general population, patients with BQs had worse scores in all SF-36 domains (P<0.05). Males reported significantly higher quality of life scores on physical functioning and social functioning than females did. Although the age, pulmonary function, presence of nasal polyps, upper airway symptoms, tobacco smoking history, and disease duration was similar between them. Males with BQs had worse quality of life than males from the Spanish general population on body pain, general health, and vitality (P<0.05). Females with BQs had worse quality of life than females from the Spanish general population on physical function, body pain, general health, vitality, social function, and emotional role (P<0.05). Nasal polyps were found in 25 (41.6%) of 60 patients with BQs. No significant differences were observed on quality of life outcomes between patients with BQs with and without nasal polyposis. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that BQs has a considerable impact on quality of life while nasal polyposis has no additional impact on the quality of life of patients with BQs.

Adult↗

Quality of life in children with psychiatric disorders: self-, parent, and clinician report.

OBJECTIVE: To study the relationship between child psychiatric disorders and quality of life (QoL). METHOD: In a sample of 310 children (ages 6-18 years) referred for psychiatric problems, children, parents, and clinicians reported on psychopathology and subjective and objective QoL indicators. RESULTS: Six diagnostic categories were distinguished: attention-deficit and disruptive behavior disorders, anxiety disorders, pervasive developmental disorders, mood disorders, other disorders, and no diagnosis. In overall QoL, no differences were found between the diagnostic categories, except in clinician's ratings, who rated children with pervasive developmental disorder as having a poorer QoL than children with other diagnoses. In each diagnostic category specific QoL subdomains were affected: for children with attention-deficit and disruptive behavior disorder, school functioning and social functioning; for children with anxiety disorder, emotional functioning; for children with pervasive developmental disorder, social functioning; and for children with mood disorder, emotional functioning. CONCLUSIONS: Across multiple raters, the distinguished child psychiatric disorders had a different impact on QoL. Knowledge about domains of QoL that are affected in specific child psychiatric disorders can help clinicians to focus on particular QoL domains during the diagnostic process and to define adequate treatment goals.

Adolescent↗

Does cognition predict community function only in schizophrenia?: a study of schizophrenia patients, bipolar affective disorder patients, and community control subjects.

Cognitive deficits predict functioning in schizophrenia; however, little is known as to whether the association is present in other mental disorders. If specific cognitive deficits uniquely predict functional impairment in schizophrenia the association of select aspects of brain dysfunction with daily living would suggest an intervention target and perhaps a means by which to improve the functioning of schizophrenia patients. The relationship of cognition and functioning was investigated in schizophrenia (n=39), bipolar affective disorder (n=27), and nonpsychiatric control (n=38) participants to determine whether the associations varied across groups. We examined verbal memory, verbal learning, verbal fluency, vigilance, executive functioning, symptomatology, and generalized cognitive functioning for associations with social function. Correlational analyses revealed particular cognitive domains (e.g., verbal memory) to be associated with social functioning in schizophrenia, bipolar, and control subjects; however generalized cognitive function and symptomatology were also associated with social functioning in patients. Multiple regression analyses revealed that in schizophrenia poor verbal memory predicted worse social functioning even after the effects of generalized cognitive dysfunction were considered. Verbal memory indices failed to account for variance in social function in bipolar patients and control subjects after consideration of generalized cognitive function. Bipolar patients with worse planning and problem solving tended to have worse social functioning. Therefore, unlike schizophrenia patients who may fail to process verbally mediated material, bipolar patients' difficulty with logical approaches to problems in daily living may have the greatest impact on their community function.

Adult↗

Validation of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) as a measure of psychosocial function in breast cancer patients.

The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) quality of life questionnaire QLQ-C30 has been developed as a quantitative measure of health-related quality of life for use in clinical trials of cancer patients. Validity is an important measurement property of all scientific tests. This study contributes to the iterative process of validating the questionnaire by focusing on the psychosocial subscales of the QLQ-C30, using baseline data from 150 patients participating in a randomised trial of supportive group therapy for metastatic breast cancer. The results provide strong support for the discriminative validity of the global health/quality of life, role function and social function subscales of the QLQ-C30, in patients differing according to clinical criteria. The psychosocial focus of the trial enabled expansion of criteria used to form patient subgroups, beyond medical factors, and consequently support was demonstrated for the discriminative validity of the emotional and cognitive function subscales. The degree of support for these subscales was less substantial than for the other QLQ-C30 subscales as there were fewer relevant criteria. Convergence assessed by correlations with independent measures of psychosocial function provides strong support for the convergent validity of the emotional function, role function and global health/quality of life subscales of the QLQ-C30, and moderate support for the social function subscales. There was little opportunity for the cognitive function subscale to associate with conceptually analogous subscales. Further testing is recommended with more comprehensive and specific measures of cognitive status. In general, the psychosocial subscales of the QLQ-C30 appear to be measuring the concepts they are purported to measure.

Adult↗

Relationship of functional quality of life to strategies for coping with the stress of living with HIV/AIDS.

The authors examined factors associated with four dimensions of functional quality of life (physical functioning, energy/fatigue, social functioning, and role functioning) in 142 men and women living with HIV/AIDS. Participants completed the Brief COPE inventory and the Medical Outcomes Study Health Survey, with HIV-relevant items added. Greater use of maladaptive coping strategies was associated with lower levels of energy and social functioning. Pain severe enough to interfere with daily living tasks was associated with a lower level of functional quality of life on all four quality of life dimensions. Interventions aimed at developing adaptive coping strategies and improving pain management may improve functional aspects of quality of life in persons living with HIV/AIDS.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Alosetron improves quality of life in women with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of alosetron, a treatment recently approved in the United States for irritable bowel syndrome in diarrhea-predominant female patients, on health-related quality of life. METHODS: Quality of life was assessed as part of two 12-wk randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled irritable bowel syndrome studies comparing alosetron 1 mg b.i.d. with placebo (S3BA3001 and S3BA3002). Patients completed a validated disease-specific quality of life questionnaire, the Irritable Bowel Syndrome Quality of Life Questionnaire (IBSQOL), at baseline and at the 12-wk or final visit. The clinical relevance of data were also evaluated by a minimal meaningful difference instrument. RESULTS: A total of 626 and 647 patients were enrolled in studies S3BA3001 and S3BA3002, respectively. Approximately 70% of patients in each study had diarrhea-predominant IBS. In diarrhea-predominant patients enrolled in S3BA3001, statistically significant (p < 0.05) improvements with alosetron versus placebo were observed on all nine IBSQOL scales (emotional health, mental health, sleep, energy, physical functioning, food/diet, social functioning, role-physical, and sexual relations) and for all but one scale (mental health) in S3BA3002. In both studies, a significantly greater percentage of patients treated with alosetron (p < 0.05) experienced clinically meaningful improvement on three of the nine IBSQOL scales (food/diet, social functioning, and role-physical) compared with patients treated with placebo. Patients treated with alosetron did not show worsening in any quality of life domain compared with patients treated with placebo. CONCLUSIONS: These results in women with diarrhea-predominant IBS demonstrate that alosetron significantly improves health-related quality of life.

Carbolines↗

Health-related quality of life burden of women with endometriosis: a literature review.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to conduct a comprehensive and systematic literature review of the health-related quality of life (HRQL) burden of endometriosis in adults and adolescents. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search and review of studies published between January 1999 and January 2006 using MEDLINE and relevant online resources. Search terms used included endometriosis, quality of life, burden of illness, psychology, and adolescent. We assessed: (1) the HRQL impact of endometriosis and related key symptoms; (2) the impact of specific pharmacologic and surgical treatments of endometriosis on HRQL; and (3) the presence and impact of endometriosis in adolescents. RESULTS: Twenty relevant studies were identified and reviewed. Generic instruments most commonly used to assess HRQL in patients with endometriosis included the SF-36 and the SF-12. The EQ-5D was used to measure utilities. The Endometriosis Health Profile-30 (EHP-30) and its subset, the EHP-5, have been recently developed for use in endometriosis studies. Endometriosis was associated with significant impairments in pain, psychological functioning, and social functioning. Pharmacological and surgical treatments for endometriosis improved patients physical functioning, psychological functioning, vitality, pain level, and general health. Few studies used disease specific instruments to characterize the HRQL burden of endometriosis, addressed the HRQL impact of endometriosis-related infertility, and examined endometriosis in adolescents. Instruments specifically validated to measure HRQL in adolescents were not identified. CONCLUSIONS: Endometriosis impairs HRQL, especially in the domains of pain, psychological and social functioning. Therapies have been shown to alleviate symptoms and improve HRQL. Further research is warranted to evaluate the impact of endometriosis on HRQL in adolescents and the impact of infertility due to endometriosis on HRQL.

Adolescent↗

Assessing quality of life during chemotherapy for pleural mesothelioma: feasibility, validity, and results of using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire and Lung Cancer Module.

PURPOSE: To assess the feasibility and validity of using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) and Lung Cancer Module (QLQ-LC13) to describe health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with pleural mesothelioma undergoing combination chemotherapy, to identify the most impaired aspects of HRQL, and to assess the impact of chemotherapy on HRQL. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-three patients received cisplatin on day 1 and gemcitabine on days 1, 8, and 15 of a 28-day cycle for a maximum of six cycles. HRQL was assessed using the EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-LC13. RESULTS: Compliance was 100% at baseline but subsequently decreased. At baseline, role function and social function were the most impaired domains, and the worst-rated symptoms were fatigue, dyspnea, pain, insomnia, appetite loss, and cough. Dyspnea, pain, insomnia, and cough improved with chemotherapy, although functional domains and chemotherapy-related symptoms deteriorated. Fatigue remained unchanged. Few patients reported hemoptysis. Functional domains and symptoms scales from the QLQ-C30 demonstrated predictive validity for survival. The predictive value of QLQ-LC13 pain scores was improved by combining three pain items into a single score. Dyspnea scores were correlated strongly with lung function as measured by forced vital capacity. CONCLUSION: This study supports the validity of the EORTC QLQ-C30 and LC13 as outcome measures for trials of chemotherapy in mesothelioma. Although the most prominent symptoms reported were concordant with clinical experience, impairments in role and social function and insomnia were worse than expected. Future research should focus on how best to apply, analyze, and interpret existing, validated HRQL instruments in mesothelioma research and practice, not on the development of new ones.

Aged↗

Paroxetine to treat irritable bowel syndrome not responding to high-fiber diet: a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the trial was to determine whether a high-fiber diet (HFD) alone or in combination with paroxetine or placebo was effective treatment for patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). METHODS DESIGN: Trial of HFD alone (Group 1) followed by a randomized, double-blind trial of HFD with paroxetine or placebo (Group 2). SETTING: Gastroenterology office in a 524-bed university-affiliated community hospital in Pittsburgh. PATIENTS: Men and women, aged 18-65 yr, previously diagnosed with IBS but otherwise healthy. INTERVENTION: Institution of HFD in 98 participants consuming low- or average-fiber diets. Allocation of paroxetine to 38 and placebo to 43 symptomatic participants consuming HFDs. MEASUREMENTS: Overall well-being, abdominal pain, and abdominal bloating (Groups 1 and 2); food avoidance, work functioning, and social functioning (Group 2). RESULTS: In Group 1, overall well-being improved in 26% patients, and abdominal pain and bloating decreased in 22% and 26% patients, respectively, with an HFD. In Group 2, overall well-being improved more with paroxetine than with placebo (63.3%vs 26.3%; p= 0.01), but abdominal pain, bloating, and social functioning did not. With paroxetine, food avoidance decreased (p= 0.03) and work functioning was marginally better (p= 0.08). Before unblinding, more paroxetine recipients than placebo recipients wanted to continue their study medication (84%vs 37%; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The difference in overall well-being found in our paroxetine/placebo trial is greater than that found in previously published drug/placebo trials for IBS. Moreover, the difference in well-being applied to nondepressed recipients of paroxetine.

Adolescent↗

Is participation in cardiac rehabilitation programs associated with better quality of life and return to work after coronary artery bypass operations? The Israeli CABG Study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the putative effect of cardiac rehabilitation programs on the 'health-related quality of life' and 'return to work' in pre-retirement patients one year after coronary artery bypass grafting. METHODS: Of the 2,085 patients aged 45-64 who survived one year after CABG and were Israeli residents, 145 (6.9%) had participated in rehabilitation programs. Of these, 124 (83%) who answered QOL questionnaires were individually matched with 248 controls by gender, age within 5 years, and the time the questionnaire was answered. All patients had full clinical follow-up including a pre-operative interview. The Short Form-36 QOL questionnaire as well as a specific questionnaire were mailed to surviving patients one year after surgery. Study outcomes included the scores on eight scales and two summary components of the SF-36, as well as 'return to work' and 'satisfaction with medical services' from the specific questionnaire. Analysis was done for matched samples. RESULTS: Cardiac rehabilitation participants had significantly higher SF-36 scores in general health, physical functioning, and social functioning. They had borderline significant higher scores in the physical summary component of the SF-36. The specific questionnaire revealed significantly better overall functioning, higher satisfaction with medical care, and higher rate of return to work. While participants in cardiac rehabilitation and their controls were similar in their socio-demographic and clinical profiles, participating patients tended to be more physically active and more fully employed than their controls. CONCLUSIONS: Rehabilitation participants had a self-perception of better HRQOL, most significantly in social functioning. Our findings of more frequent return to work and higher satisfaction with medical care should induce a policy to encourage participation in cardiac rehabilitation programs after CABG.

Case-Control Studies↗

Secondary mania following traumatic brain injury.

OBJECTIVE: In this study patients were examined during the first year after traumatic brain injury to determine the presence of secondary mania. METHOD: A consecutive series of 66 patients with closed-head injury were evaluated in the hospital and at 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups. The patients were examined with a semistructured psychiatric interview and scales for measurement of impairment in activities of daily living, intellectual function, and social functioning. Patients fulfilling the DSM-III-R criteria for mania were compared to patients with major depression and to patients without affective disturbances in regard to their background characteristics, impairment variables, and lesion locations. RESULTS: Six patients (9%) met the criteria for mania at some point during follow-up. The presence of temporal basal polar lesions was significantly associated with secondary mania even when the effect of other lesion locations was taken into account. Secondary mania was not found to be associated with the severity of brain injury, degree of physical or cognitive impairment, level of social functioning, or previous family or personal history of psychiatric disorder. The duration of mania, however, appeared to be brief, lasting approximately 2 months. CONCLUSIONS: The 9% frequency of secondary mania in these patients with traumatic brain injury is significantly greater than that seen in other brain-injured populations (e.g., patients with stroke). The major correlate was the presence of a temporal basal polar lesion.

Adult↗

Different classification systems yield different dementia occurrence among nonagenarians and centenarians.

Literature data consistently show different prevalence estimates of dementia when different classification systems are used in the same population. Very few data are available for the oldest old of the elderly. We investigated the occurrence of dementia among 34 nonagenarians and centenarians according to four classification systems: the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, third edition revised (DSM-III-R) and fourth edition (DSM-IV), the World Health Organization's International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision (ICD-10), and the Cambridge Examination for Mental Disorders of the Elderly (CAMDEX). Cognitive functioning, work, social function and independence in activities of daily living were evaluated by using an extensive neuropsychological examination. The prevalence (95% CI) of dementia was the following: 47.1% (95% CI 30.3-63.8) with the DSM-III-R criteria, 41.2% (95% CI 24.6-57.7) with the DSM-IV criteria, 29.4% (95% CI 14.1-44.7) with the ICD-10 criteria and 38.2% (95% CI 21.9-54.6) with the CAMDEX. The factors that best predicted disagreement between DSM-III-R and DSM-IV were calculation impairment and the presence or absence of personality changes. DSM-III-R and ICD-10 were differentiated by the weight given to executive functions that all have to be impaired according to ICD-10, whereas progressive deterioration differentiated CAMDEX from DSM-III-R. It should be noted that although the DSM-III-R diagnoses differ by a factor of 1.6 times from the ICD-10 and 1.2 times from the CAMDEX diagnoses, we are speaking about dementia, which is very frequent in nonagenarians and centenarians. Moreover, with regard to public health, an estimation of the number of subjects who will lose their autonomy is rather more useful and informative than simple prevalence figures of dementia by itself. In this light, classification systems, such as the ICD-10, that do not include impairment of social function as a criterion for assessing dementia become less adequate.

Aged↗

Changes in quality of life among persons with HIV infection.

Health-related quality of life (QOL) is an important component of the evaluation of patient outcome in HIV infection where disease is progressive and debilitating. This paper compares patient-reported QOL obtained from questionnaires which cover functional ability, social functioning, cognition, mental health, disability days, disease symptoms, and overall health in the previous 3 months. These scales have been validated on HIV populations. We compared changes in health status over 12 months for 669 patients with varying HIV disease severity: 134 asymptomatic, 416 symptomatic (previously termed ARC), and 119 AIDS. Groups were evaluated at baseline for demographic and health status differences (i.e., age, CD4+). Declines in health status and psychosocial status were found over the year for all persons. Individuals with symptomatic disease or AIDS had significant declines of 10-20% (p < 0.001) in all aspects of role functioning (social, daily activities, energy, and global health) and increased disease symptoms, but no significant declines in cognition or mental health. Persons with AIDS had greater declines than those with symptomatic disease. AIDS and symptomatic patients also reported significantly fewer hours at work and more disability days than asymptomatic patients. The impact that HIV disease has on the health status of non-AIDS symptomatic patients is especially striking.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗