Differences in response rates between mail,e-mail,and telephone follow-up in hand surgery research

Background

There is a need to determine the difference in response to mail, e-mail, and phone in clinical research surveys.

Methods

We enrolled 150 new and follow-up patients presenting to our hand and upper extremity department. Patients were assigned to complete a survey by mail, e-mail, or phone 3 months after enrollment, altering the follow-up method every 5 patients, until we had 3 groups of 50 patients. At initial enrollment and at 3 month follow-up (range 2–5 months), patients completed the short version of the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand questionnaire (QuickDASH), the short version of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (PSEQ), and rated their pain intensity.

Results

The percent of patients that completed the survey was 34 % for mail, 24 % for e-mail, and 80 % for phone. Factors associated with responding to the survey were older age, nonsmoking, and lower pain intensity. Working full-time was associated with not responding.

Conclusions

The response rate to survey by phone is significantly higher than by mail or e-mail. Younger age, smoking, higher pain intensity, and working full-time are associated with not responding.Type of study/level of evidence: Prognostic I     

Effectiveness of nurse-led brief alcohol intervention: a cluster randomized controlled trial

AIM: This paper reports an evaluation of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of nurse-led screening and brief intervention in reducing excessive alcohol consumption among patients in primary health care. BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol consumption is a major source of social, economic and health problems. However, such consumption is responsive to brief alcohol intervention. To date, brief intervention research in primary health care has focused on general practitioner-led interventions, and there is only circumstantial evidence of effectiveness in nurse-led interventions. However, nurses are increasingly taking a lead in health promotion work in primary care. METHODS: A pragmatic cluster-randomized controlled trial was carried out between August 2000 and June 2003 to evaluate the effects of a brief intervention compared with standard advice (control condition). A total of 40 general practice clusters (intervention = 21 and control = 19) recruited 127 patients (intervention = 67 and control = 60) to the trial. Excessive consumption was identified opportunistically via the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. After baseline assessment, patients received either a 5-10 minutes brief intervention using the 'Drink-Less' protocol or standard advice (control condition). Follow-up occurred at 6 and 12 months postintervention. RESULTS: Analysis of variance weighted for cluster size revealed no statistically significant differences between intervention and control patients at follow up. A majority of patients in both conditions reduced their alcohol consumption between assessment and subsequent measurement. Economic analysis suggested that the brief intervention led to no statistically significant changes in subsequent health service resource use relative to standard treatment. CONCLUSION: The brief intervention evaluated in this trial had no effect over standard advice delivered by nurses in primary health care. However, there was a reduction in excessive drinking across both arms of the trial over time. Due to nurse drop-out, this trial was significantly underpowered. Future research should explore barriers to nurses' involvement in research trials, particularly with an alcohol focus. A larger trial is required to evaluate the effectiveness of nurse-led screening and brief alcohol intervention in primary care.     

护理人员对预防病人难免性压疮的真实体验

目的：了解护理人员对预防病人压疮的真实感受和采取的应对方法。探讨管理措施,减轻护士压力,避免压疮的发生。方法：应用质性研究中的现象学研究法,对我院80名护理人员分组进行访谈。结果：对资料分析、分类整理,归纳4个结构概念：①心理压力过大;②家属和病人不协作;③渴望结合实际制定标准;④人力资源缺乏。结论：加强对压疮的认识,对难免压疮制定标准;评估危险因素,增强预防意识;合理调配护理人员,增加护理设备;加强护患沟通。     

Outcomes of Combined Liver–Kidney Transplantation in Children: Analysis of the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients

Combined liver–kidney transplantation (CLKT) in children is uncommon and outcomes have not been well defined. Using the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, data were analyzed on 152 primary pediatric CLKTs performed from October 1987 to February 2011, to determine their outcome in the largest series reported to date. Patient survival was 86.8%, 82.1% and 78.9% at 1, 5 and 10 years, liver graft survival was 81.9%, 76.5% and 72.6%, and kidney graft survival was 83.4%, 76.5% and 66.8%. By way of comparison, the Registry was queried for pediatric patient survival following isolated liver transplantation (LT) during the same time frame: 86.7%, 81.2% and 77.4% and following isolated kidney transplant (KT): 98.2%, 95.4% and 90% at 1, 5 and 10 years. In patients having undergone CLKT, primary hyperoxaluria was associated with reduced patient (p = 0.01), liver graft (p = 0.01) and kidney graft survival (p = 0.01). Furthermore, graft outcome following CLKT improved over the past decade (p = 0.04 for liver, p = 0.02 for kidney), but this did not translate into improved patient outcome (p = 0.2). All in all, our results confirmed that survival following LT was less than following KT, and that CLKT offered similar patient survival to isolated LT.     

Robotic Trans‐Abdominal Transplant Nephrectomy for a Failed Renal Allograft

Minimally invasive surgery for removal of a failed renal allograft has not previously been reported. Herein, we report the first robotic trans‐abdominal transplant nephrectomy (TN). A 34‐year‐old male with Alport's syndrome lost function of his deceased donor allograft after 12 years and presented with fever, pain over his allograft and hematuria. The operation was performed intra‐abdominally using the Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System with four trocars. The total operative time was 235 min and the estimated blood loss was less than 25 cm³. There were no peri‐operative complications observed and the patient was discharged to home less than 24 h postoperatively. The utilization of robotic technology facilitated the successful performance of a minimally invasive, trans‐abdominal TN.