Venous thromboembolism in patients with cancer. Part II. Current treatment strategies

Patients with cancer have an increased risk of thromboembolism. This complication is connected to a variety of different factors and is influenced by the conditions described in Virchow's triad: stasis, vascular endothelial damage, and hypercoagulability. Once thromboembolism is diagnosed, treatment in patients with cancer usually involves anticoagulation with unfractionated or low-molecular-weight heparin and progression to oral anticoagulant therapy. Duration of treatment is usually three to six months, with most patients receiving six months of anticoagulation. Patients with cancer may be at risk for recurrent thrombosis as well, despite optimal use of oral anticoagulant therapy, and some of these patients may require lifelong heparin therapy. This article describes the current treatment regimens to provide anticoagulation therapy to patients with cancer, including a discussion of the low-molecular-weight heparins and dosing parameters. Nursing interventions to help provide these treatments safely are discussed. Patients with cancer have a high rate of thromboembolism; oncology nurses should heighten their awareness of this important complication, treatment options, and appropriate nursing interventions.     

Pediatric oncology nurses' attitudes related to discussing fertility preservation with pediatric cancer patients and their families.

This study explores nurses' attitudes toward the discussion of fertility preservation (FP) with pediatric cancer patients and their families. A cross-sectional survey was administered to attendees of a pediatric oncology conference. Of the 115 nurses who responded and comprised the study sample, most reported discussing risks of infertility or FP 相似文献   

Sexuality in children and adolescents with cancer: pediatric oncology nurses' attitudes and behaviors

It is essential that health professionals openly discuss how cancer may affect the developing sexuality of childhood cancer patients. This study was conducted to explore nurses' attitudes and behaviors regarding sexuality in cancer patients. Results are reported for a subset of a larger study (N = 937) from subjects who indicated that their practice included children and/or adolescents (N = 156). The Williams-Wilson Sexuality Survey was used to measure attitudes towards sexuality in cancer patients, behavior in nursing care related to the sexuality of a cancer patient, and attitudes towards sexuality in the child and/or adolescent with cancer. The majority of subjects agreed that sexuality should be a routine component of nursing care, yet less than half had actually discussed an alternation in sexuality with an adolescent patient. More than one third said they were not comfortable in initiating such discussions. However, they were comfortable in discussing sexuality concerns when these discussions were initiated by the patient and/or family.     

Venous thromboembolism and risk of cancer in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Essentials

• Can venous thromboembolism (VTE) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients be marker of cancer?
• RA patients with VTE and comparison cohorts from population‐based registries were compared.
• Increased risk of cancer in RA patients with VTE during the first year of VTE was observed.
• Risk of cancer in RA patients was increased also during the longer period following VTE.

     

Venous access in oncology and haematology patients: Part two

AIM: To assess the validity and inter-rater reliability of two tools, Venous Assessment Tool (VAT) and Deciding on IntraVenous Access (DIVA), using thematic analysis of feedback from nurses who used the tools, METHOD: Analysis methods used in grounded theory were employed to investigate the written feedback provided by nurses. Inter-rater reliability was tested statistically using percentage agreement and the kappa (K) statistic. FINDINGS: Thematic analysis of the nurses' feedback generated themes concerning the role of clinical judgement, how theory translates to practice and the role of patient preference when using VAT and DIVA. Exploring these themes confirmed the validity of the tools and highlighted the importance of these considerations when evaluating the usefulness of assessment tools in the clinical environment. When VAT was used by a group of nurses to assess patients, the strength of agreement statistically was 'moderate'. When using DIVA, the tool demonstrated 'very good' agreement statistically. CONCLUSION: When used with oncology and haematology patients, VAT and DIVA have been shown to generate agreement among the nurses who used them beyond that which would be expected by chance. As the only tools of this kind with evidence of inter-rater reliability, they provide clinicians with a useful resource which can be used in practice or research. However, the use of assessment tools cannot replace clinical judgement or override the preferences of patients.     

The impact of infusion reactions on oncology patients and clinicians in the inpatient and outpatient practice settings: oncology nurses' perspectives.

Cancer patients treated with parenteral chimeric or humanized monoclonal antibody agents or chemotherapy are at risk of experiencing an infusion reaction. The impact of infusion reactions can be substantial. Infusion reactions, even when mild, can be disruptive and stressful. In-person interviews with 202 nurses were conducted at the 2005 Annual Oncology Nursing Society Congress to evaluate the impact of infusion reactions on patients and nurses in the inpatient and outpatient practice settings. Results from this survey study suggest that infusion reactions have a significant negative impact on both patients and nurses.     

Predictors of oncology and hospice nurses' spiritual care perspectives and practices.

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that predict nurses' spiritual care perspectives and practices and compare these perspectives and practices between nurses in two subspecialties. The sample included 181 oncology nurses and 638 hospice nurses who completed the Spiritual Care Perspectives Survey and a demographic form by mail. The hospice nurses surveyed used traditional spiritual care interventions more frequently and held more positive perspectives regarding spiritual caregiving than oncology nurses. However, what determined spiritual care practices and perspectives most was the spirituality of the nurse. Nurses must continue to explore how their personal spirituality contributes to their caregiving.     

Venous thromboembolism in patients undergoing rehabilitation for stroke.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of venous thromboembolism during rehabilitation for stroke and to identify factors that alter its risk. DESIGN: Cohort. SETTING: Tertiary care stroke rehabilitation program. PATIENTS: 102 consecutive patients undergoing rehabilitation for stroke. INTERVENTIONS: Impedance plethysmography (IPG) as routine screening and in patients with symptoms of deep venous thrombosis (DVT). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: DVT, pulmonary embolism (PE), death from PE. RESULTS: Venous thromboembolism was documented in 11 patients (11%) an average of 60 days after stroke onset (range 14-138 days); 2 patients (2%) died from PE. DVT was found on routine IPG screening in six patients and verified by IPG in two clinically symptomatic patients. The odds of developing venous thromboembolism was 17.6 (95% confidence interval: 2.2-143.5) in patients who were bedridden or wheelchair-bound at the time of admission. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of venous thromboembolism is high and greatest in bedridden or wheelchair-bound patients undergoing stroke rehabilitation; randomized trials evaluating the safety and efficacy of screening and/or prophylaxis in such patients are required.     

Physicians' attitudes and practices regarding treatment of HIV-infected patients.

We conducted a statewide survey to identify physicians' experiences, attitudes, and practices related to HIV-infected patients. A random sample, stratified by medical specialty (primary care, surgery, emergency medicine), was drawn. Physicians were concerned about contagion and inadequate knowledge to care for HIV-infected patients; 40% reported refusing or referring new HIV-infected patients. Differences across medical specialty and respondents' interest in various medical education topics to remedy knowledge deficits are discussed.     

Venous thromboembolism associated with hip and knee arthroplasty: current prophylactic practices and outcomes.

Joint registry and hospital data bases for 5,024 total hip and total knee arthroplasties done between 1986 and 1988 at the Mayo Clinic were used to study prophylactic measures and frequency of symptomatic deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. In virtually all patients, graduated compression stockings were used, with or without another type of prophylaxis. Only 44 of 3,115 patients who underwent hip arthroplasty (1.4%) and 32 of 1,909 patients who underwent knee arthroplasty (1.7%) had definite or probable deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism. Death definitely or possibly attributable to pulmonary embolism occurred in 11 patients who underwent hip arthroplasty (0.35%) and 1 patient who underwent knee arthroplasty (0.05%). Although patients with a history of deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism were more likely to receive warfarin than were patients without such a history, the relative risk of symptomatic deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism in patients who underwent hip arthroplasty and received warfarin postoperatively was approximately half that in patients who received other types of prophylaxis. The risk of death from pulmonary embolism was similarly diminished in the group that received warfarin. The lower rates of these complications in the patients who received warfarin support the prophylactic use of this agent after total hip arthroplasty.     

Venous thromboembolism prophylaxis and treatment in patients with acute stroke and traumatic brain injury

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Patients with acute stroke and traumatic brain injury are at risk to develop venous thromboembolism. This review analyzes the available literature to propose guidelines for the prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolism in these groups of patients. RECENT FINDINGS: In acute ischemic stroke, low-dose low-molecular-weight heparin has the best benefit-risk ratio to prevent venous thromboembolism. Patients with primary intracerebral hemorrhage and traumatic brain injury should receive intermittent pneumatic compression, followed by low-dose low-molecular-weight heparin or unfractioned heparin 3-4 days after stroke onset or 24 h after injury or surgery, respectively, and after cessation of bleeding. Concerning treatment, in patients with deep-vein thrombosis lower doses of heparin are indicated to prevent pulmonary embolism, and a vena cava filter should be considered. In patients with pulmonary embolism, treatment could be more aggressive, because of a high mortality risk. SUMMARY: Adequate prevention of venous thromboembolism with intermittent pneumatic compression or pharmacological prophylaxis is important. The best treatment of venous thromboembolism remains unclear. In case of pulmonary embolism, more aggressive treatment is warranted.     

肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症预防和管理的最佳证据总结

目的检索和总结肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症预防及管理的最佳证据。方法按照“6S”金字塔模型逐层检索BMJ Best Practice、WHO、国际指南协作网、英国国家卫生与临床优化研究所、苏格兰院际指南网、美国国立指南库、加拿大安大略注册护士协会、新西兰指南协作组、Cochrane Library、乔安娜布里格斯研究所循证卫生保健中心数据库、PubMed、Embase、Web of Science、中国生物医学文献服务系统、中国知网、万方数据库、维普数据库中关于肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症预防及管理的相关文献。检索时限从建库至2020年5月31日。由2名研究者对文献质量进行评价和资料提取。结果共纳入23篇文献,包括指南8篇、专家共识2篇、系统评价13篇。从静脉血栓栓塞症风险评估、诊断、预防、健康教育及管理5个方面总结出40条肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症预防及管理的最佳证据。结论肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症预防与管理的最佳证据可为临床提供理论依据,建议医护联合应用证据,以科学、有效、规范管理和预防肿瘤患者静脉血栓栓塞症,减少静脉血栓栓塞症的发生,提高肿瘤患者的生存质量。     

Venous thromboembolism prevention with LMWHs in medical and orthopedic surgery patients

OBJECTIVE: To discuss the role of low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) in the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in medical and orthopedic surgery patients. VTE prophylaxis trials in these practice settings establishing the current use of LMWHs marketed in the US are included. An overview is also provided of VTE incidence, risk factors, and prophylaxis consensus guidelines. DATA SOURCES AND STUDY SELECTION: Clinical trials, review articles, and meta-analyses for Food and Drug Administration-approved LMWHs were identified from a MEDLINE search (1980-March 2002). Search terms included dalteparin, enoxaparin, internal medicine, low-molecular-weight heparin, orthopedic surgery, risk factors, tinzaparin, and venous thromboembolism. DATA SYNTHESIS: Consensus guidelines are useful as an initial guide to appropriate VTE prophylaxis; however, a review of the primary literature is needed to identify optimal agents, regimens, or interventions. LMWHs have demonstrated sound efficacy in VTE prevention; however, the quantity and quality of literature are not always comparable for the available agents. CONCLUSIONS: Enoxaparin has demonstrated efficacy and safety in VTE prevention in medical patients, whereas information is limited or lacking for dalteparin and tinzaparin. Total hip replacement (THR) trials have been conducted with all US-marketed LMWHs and have demonstrated the efficacy and safety of each agent. Trials specifically establishing the efficacy of an LMWH in total knee replacement surgery (TKR) have been published for enoxaparin. One combination THR and TKR trial has been published for tinzaparin. These trial outcomes have positioned the LMWHs as key alternatives to adjusted-dose warfarin for VTE prophylaxis in orthopedic surgery. Inherent differences between LMWHs prevent the extrapolation of clinical outcomes from 1 trial to another.     

Management of obesity in primary care: nurses' practices, beliefs and attitudes

AIM: This paper is a report of a study to investigate patterns of clinical practice, beliefs and attitudes of primary care nurses with respect to obesity management. BACKGROUND: Nurses in primary care potentially play a key role in managing obesity, which has become a priority issue. There have been few studies of either the extent of clinical practice of nurses, or their attitudes and beliefs in this setting. METHODS: A correlational survey design was employed. Structured questionnaires were posted to 564 nurses and health visitors in primary care organizations in England. The response rate was 72.3%. The survey was conducted in April and May 2006. FINDINGS: Very few respondents reported training in obesity management, and most did not believe that organizational support was in place. Only practice nurses reported substantial clinical activity in obesity management, accounting for almost 5% of their contracted hours. This activity, comprised of assessment, lifestyle change support and referral, occurred in one-to-one consultations. Other nurses and health visitors reported much less activity, although they believed obesity to be an important health issue and its management an appropriate part of their role. Whilst outright negative stereotypes were rare, there were nevertheless a range of potentially negative beliefs and attitudes relating to obesity and obese patients. These views were related to the respondent's own body mass index but not to gender, age, experience and occupation. CONCLUSION: Training and organizational support for obesity management are required by primary care nurses. Training should also address beliefs and attitudes about obesity and obese persons.     

A longitudinal study of nurses' attitudes toward caring for patients with AIDS in Erie County.

The purpose of this study was to examine nurses' attitudes toward caring for patients with AIDS in a longitudinal context. Results of the 1990 survey were compared with those of a survey conducted in 1986 for the purpose of examining changes in attitudes over time. Findings indicated that there were no significant differences between the 1986 and 1990 scores on the attitude scales. The results of the study indicated that many nurses still have fears and concerns about caring for patients with AIDS.