Luís Manuel Cunha Batalha

Massage in children with cancer: effectiveness of a protocol

OBJECTIVES massage can help relieve pain, although empirical evidence is scarce and contradictory. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of a massage protocol in relieving pain in children hospitalized with cancer. METHODS a randomized, controlled, and single-blind trial was performed in a sample of 52 children aged between 10 and 18 years who were hospitalized in a pediatric cancer ward. The intervention consisted of the implementation of a massage protocol with three sessions of 20 to 30minutes on alternate days over a one-week period. The effectiveness of the protocol was evaluated by assessing pain using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), while the effectiveness of each massage session was measured using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). RESULTS the massage protocol was only effective in reducing the interference of pain in walking (p<0.05), although it also contributed to relieve pain and its impact on the childrens activities. After each massage session, the intensity of the pain experienced by the child decreased (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS despite the small sample size, massage therapy appears to be a useful intervention in reducing pain in children with cancer. However, there are still questions regarding the effectiveness of this massage protocol. The authors recommend its use due to its contribution to the promotion of the childs well-being and quality of life.

Pain assessment using the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool: A systematic review

BACKGROUND The Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool (APPT) is a multidimensional pain assessment tool designed to assess pain location (body outline diagram), intensity (word graphic rating scale) and quality (list of pain descriptors) in hospitalized children eight to 17 years of age. OBJECTIVES To identify the age range, health conditions, settings and purpose for which APPT has been used; the components of the APPT that have been used; and the reported clinical and research utility of the APPT. METHODS A systematic review of published studies using the APPT was performed. Studies were identified through electronic searches in CINAHL, Medline, PubMed, SciELO and PsycInfo. RESULTS Twenty-three studies were analyzed. APPT has been used in patients between two and 68 years of age, with various acute and chronic conditions, in and out of hospital. All but six studies used the three components of the APPT. Most of the studies used the total number of sites marked, mean pain intensity and mean number of pain descriptors selected as main outcome measures; however, scoring methods varied. Studies report that the use of the APPT is relevant for clinical practice and for research. CONCLUSION Obtaining self-report of pain using the APPT may help clinicians to tailor pain management interventions. It may also be used in studies to provide a deeper understanding of the pain experience and to examine the effectiveness of pain management interventions. However, outcome measures and methods of scoring the different components of the APPT need to be clearly identified.

Adaptacao cultural e propriedades psicometricas da versao Portuguesa da escala Behavioral Pain Scale: Intubated Patient (BPS-IP/PT)

Scales developed to assess pain in adults receiving intensive care are few and insufficiently studied. The aim of this study was the semantic and cultural ad...

Adaptação cultural e propriedades psicométricas da versão portuguesa da escala Pain Assessment in Advanced Dementia

The scales developed for pain assessment in non-communicative elderly persons have not been sufficiently tested to ensure their validity and reliability. T...

Fixação de cateteres venosos periféricos em crianças: estudo comparativo

The present study describes and compares two methods for inserting Peripheral Venous Catheters with and without the use of a splint, and their impact on comfort, performance of daily activities, clinical complications and duration of application. This is a prospective and descriptive study involving children aged up to 10 years hospitalized in two hospitals. They required the insertion of Peripheral Venous Catheters and were punctured using an abocath needle. Patients were selected on a consecutive basis. The analysis of 59 cases shows that the insertion of Peripheral Venous Catheters with the use of a splint interferes in Daily Activities but reduces the risk of complications. The use of this technique is still controversial and its routine application requires a rational decision due to its impact on the childs daily activities.O estudo descreve e compara dois metodos de fixacao de Cateteres Venosos Perifericos, com e sem uso de imobilizacao com tala, sua interferencia no conforto, desenvolvimento das atividades de vida e complicacoes clinicas, e seu tempo de permanencia. Tratase de um estudo prospectivo e descritivo que envolve criancas internadas em dois hospitais, com idades ate 10 anos e que necessitaram de colocacao de cateteres venosos perifericos, com puncao com agulha tipo abocath. A selecao dos casos foi de natureza consecutiva. A analise de 59 casos revela que a fixacao dos cateteres venosos perifericos com uso de tala interfere nas atividades de vida, mas reduz os riscos de aparecimento de complicacoes. O uso desta tecnica permanece controverso, e o seu uso rotineiro requerer uma decisao racional, dada a sua interferencia nas atividades de vida da crianca.

Psychometric study of the European Portuguese version of the PedsQL 3.0 Cancer Module

BackgroundHealth-related quality of life (HRQoL) is an important outcome to assess the impact of cancer. This article examines the psychometric properties of the European Portuguese self-report version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ Cancer Module (PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module) in children and adolescents with cancer.MethodsThe participants, 332 children/adolescents diagnosed with cancer (8–18 years old), completed measures to assess HRQoL (PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module and DISABKIDS Chronic Generic Measure; DCGM-12) and anxiety (Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale - second edition; RCMAS-2). A subsample (n = 52) completed the PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module a second time following one-week. The pediatric oncologists completed the Intensity of Treatment Rating Scale 3.0 (ITR 3.0).ResultsFor the whole sample, the PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module demonstrated good item discrimination (rs = .30 to .54). The confirmatory factor analysis testing the presence of eight first-order factors loading significantly in a second-order factor revealed an acceptable fit (CFI = .91; RMSEA = .05). The correlation of PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module with DCGM-12 (rs = .17 to .58), and with RCMAS-2 (rs = −.16 to–.51) attested convergent validity. This inventory demonstrated minimally acceptable to very good internal consistency (αs = .65 to .87) and temporal stability (ICCs = .61 to .81).ConclusionsThese findings demonstrate that the European Portuguese self-report version of the PedsQL™ 3.0 Cancer Module is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing HRQoL in pediatric cancer.

Intervenções não farmacológicas no controlo da dor em cuidados intensivos neonatais

Background: Although it has been recognized that most ofthe pain experienced by the newborn can be prevented orsubstantially relieved, s...

Qualidade de vida em crianças com câncer: concordância entre crianças e pais

Objetivo: Descrever a qualidade de vida relacionada com a saude (QVRS) de criancas com câncer; avaliar a concordância entre auto e heterorrelato; e identificar fatores influenciadores das divergencias no auto e heterorrelato. Metodos: Estudo descritivo e transversal desenvolvido em dois servicos oncologicos pediatricos de dois hospitais Portugueses que envolveram criancas com cancro (8-17 anos) e seus pais. Resultados: A percepcao da crianca da sua QVRS foi de 66,0 ± 13,3 e a dos pais de 60,3 ± 15,0. A concordância entre auto e heterorrelato foi moderada, sendo a associacao forte. Variaveis relacionadas com a idade da crianca, sexo, tipo de tumor tempo de diagnostico e numero de internamentos nao influenciaram as divergencias entre o auto e heterorrelato. Conclusao: Uma intervencao com mais apoio deve ser realizada na resolucao das preocupacoes, gestao da dor e desconforto da crianca e reducao da ansiedade dos pais. E necessario esclarecer a influencia dos fatores que influenciam as divergencias entre o auto e heterorrelato.

Uma análise funcional da Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale: linearidade, discriminabilidade e amplitude

Background: Self-report measures of pain intensity are often treated as interval level measures, which is a rarely tested assumption. Objectives: To assess...

Validação cultural do Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool (APPT) em crianças portuguesas com cancro

Theoretical framework: Pain assessment in children with chronic conditions requires the use of multidimensional tools, such as the Adolescent Pediatric Pai...