People living with heart failure have similar symptoms and levels of depression and spiritual well-being as patients with advanced lung and pancreatic cancer.
Dr. David Bekelman from the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine thinks, “Perhaps we can do more to reduce [this] burden for heart failure patients.” Continue reading Palliative care for heart disease patients
This is the 2nd time in 2 days I’ve seen “palliative care†applied to the care or patients who are not at the end of life.
“If the relation with pain is causal, palliative care could increase the quality of life and range of activities in which people participate,” say researchers from Princeton University in New Jersey and Stony Brook, New York. Continue reading Applying palliative care to pain management
The American Thoracic Society has published recommendations for combining palliative with standard care in patients with chronic and advanced respiratory tract illnesses or critical disease.
These recommendations expand palliative care to include all patients with respiratory disease. The complementary recommendations are highlighted below. Continue reading Palliative care for all patients with lung disease
Reminiscence music reportedly reduces the symptoms of depression in patients with dementia. It’s also effective for agitation and disruptive behavior in patients with dementia, and makes it easier to provide care.
Now, researchers from the Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Santa Clara, California report that music therapy makes fiscal sense as well. Continue reading Cost-effectiveness of music therapy in palliative care
Dr. Dan Rudin from Statin Island University Hospital in New York looked at past studies and concluded it’s a “safe and cost-effective measure not to be overlooked.” Continue reading Music therapy in gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures
In 2003, Professor Edzard Ernst writing on the Cochrane Collaboration website concluded, “Compared with placebo, kava extract is an effective symptomatic treatment for anxiety although, at present, the size of the effect seems small.” Continue reading A critical review of herbals to treat anxiety and depression