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Background: We aimed to determine whether monitoring skin temperature (Tsk) over recently healed venous leg ulcers (VLUs) can provide an objective approach to predicting reulceration. The cases presented in this article were part of a larger, multisite, 6-month randomized clinical trial of a cooling intervention to prevent ulcer recurrence among patients with chronic venous disease (CVD) and with recently healed VLUs., Cases: We report a series of four patients with CVD, three experienced VLU reulceration, and one case remained free of recurrence. Assessments of recurrence likelihood is based on daily patient Tsk self-reports using a handheld infrared (IR) thermometer and clinic visits using a combination digital and long-wave IR camera. All three cases with reulceration demonstrate a persistent 2°C above baseline average Tsk increase and a "dip-and-spike" pattern from -3°C to +5°C for several days prior to reulceration. In contrast, the patient who remained free of VLU recurrence showed a stable pattern of Tsk with minimal daily fluctuations. Thermal images showed Tsk of the affected extremity is warmer compared with the contralateral limb and increased between visits when ulcers recurred., Conclusion: Using IR devices to monitor Tsk among patients with CVD at risk of reulceration is an objective and reliable approach to detect changes over time. Consistent Tsk elevation over the affected area as compared to the contralateral limb and a "dip-and-spike" pattern may predict reulceration. Infrared devices showed effectiveness in detecting changes indicative of Tsk changes in recently healed leg skin over scar tissue after VLU healing., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interests., (Copyright © 2024 by the Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurses Society.)

Objective: Infrequent breast pumping limits mother's own milk production in mothers of infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. We aimed to determine the feasibility and benefit of biomarker-based personalized text messages on pumping frequency and milk sodium levels. A secondary aim examined lactation outcomes., Study Design: In this randomized controlled pilot study, 51 mothers were randomized to receive personalized text messages regarding pumping frequency or standard care., Results: There were no differences in pumped milk volume or sodium level, however, there was a trend towards the intervention group pumping more frequently, which was significant on day 5 (p = 0.035), and they lactated nearly 9 days longer. Post-hoc analysis found the intervention group tended to be more likely to pump ≥ 500 mL by day14 (p = 0.08), a marker of long-term lactation success., Conclusion: Personalized biomarker-based text messages are feasible and may support lactation in mothers of critically ill infants., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature America, Inc.)

Background: Patients with acute respiratory failure have multiple risk factors for disability following their intensive care unit stay. Interventions to facilitate independence at hospital discharge may be more effective if personalized for patient subtypes., Objectives: To identify subtypes of patients with acute respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation and compare post-intensive care functional disability and intensive care unit mobility level among subtypes., Methods: Latent class analysis was conducted in a cohort of adult medical intensive care unit patients with acute respiratory failure receiving mechanical ventilation who survived to hospital discharge. Demographic and clinical medical record data were collected early in the stay. Clinical characteristics and outcomes were compared among subtypes by using Kruskal-Wallis tests and χ2 tests of independence., Results: In a cohort of 934 patients, the 6-class model provided the optimal fit. Patients in class 4 (obesity and kidney impairment) had worse functional impairment at hospital discharge than patients in classes 1 through 3. Patients in class 3 (alert patients) had the lowest magnitude of functional impairment (P < .001) and achieved the earliest out-of-bed mobility and highest mobility level of all subtypes (P < .001)., Conclusions: Acute respiratory failure survivor subtypes identified from clinical data available early in the intensive care unit stay differ in post-intensive care functional disability. Future research should target high-risk patients in early rehabilitation trials in the intensive care unit. Additional investigation of contextual factors and mechanisms of disability is critical to improving quality of life in acute respiratory failure survivors., (©2023 American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.)

Purpose: This aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy of a self-managed cooling intervention in individuals with recently healed venous leg ulcers (VLUs) and diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) on pain reduction and physical activity improvement., Design: A 6-month longitudinal randomized controlled trial., Subjects and Setting: The sample comprised 140 individuals with previously healed VLU and DFU who received care in 3 outpatient wound centers in the Southeastern region of the United States. Participants were randomized to the MUSTCOOL or a placebo cooling patch intervention., Methods: The cooling and placebo interventions comprised cooling or cotton-filled patch application to recently healed skin for 30 minutes, 3 times weekly plus standard of care including compression and leg elevation (participants with VLU) or therapeutic footwear and hygiene (participants with DFU) over a 6-month period. Pain severity and intensity were measured with the Brief Pain Inventory and physical activity with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, which assessed metabolic equivalent of tasks (METs) in minutes per week. Minutes in walking time per week were assessed with an accelerometer. Data were descriptively analyzed for difference changes in scores from baseline to 6 months post-intervention., Results: Data were analyzed for 81 participants randomized to cooling and placebo groups (VLUs, n = 26/29) and DFU (n = 12/16). Slight reductions in VLU pain severity (-0.5, -0.2) and interference (-0.4, -0.5) and minimal reductions in DFU pain severity (0, -0.1) and interference (0.4/0.1) were achieved. However, pain scores were low to moderate at baseline (mean 4, 0-10 with 10 worst pain possible) in both groups. For physical activity, the MET values showed low physical activity in both groups at baseline with slight improvements noted in VLU cooling and placebo groups (73/799) and DFU (1921/225), respectively. Walking time for the VLU groups improved by 1420/2523 minutes; the DFU groups improved 135/157 minutes, respectively. Findings for outcomes were not statistically significant within or between groups., Conclusions: Application of the cooling pack compared to placebo was minimally efficacious in reducing posthealing pain and improving function in this posthealed ulcer population. However for pain, scores were initially low; thus outcomes on pain, while lower, were marginal., Trial Registration: The study was prospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov on December 10, 2015 (Identifier: NCT02626156), https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02626156 ., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to report., (Copyright © 2022 by the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society.)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to test our MUSTCOOL cooling patch intervention on the incidence of venous leg (VLU) and diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) recurrence over a previously healed wound., Design: A 6-month randomized controlled trial., Subjects and Setting: The target population was individuals with previously healed ulcers receiving care in outpatient wound centers in the Southeastern region of the United States. The sample comprised 140 individuals with recently healed ulcers; their average age was 62.4 years (SD = 12 years); 86 (61.4%) were male; and 47 (33.6%) were Black or African American., Methods: Participants were randomized to the MUSTCOOL or placebo patch. Both groups received instructions to apply the patch 3 times per week, and engage in standard of care including compression and leg elevation (VLU) or therapeutic footwear and hygiene (DFU). Demographic data were collected at baseline, and incidence measures taken at 1, 3, and 6 months. We also studied whether new ulcers developed on the adjacent leg or foot. Data were reported in frequencies/percentages., Results: One hundred seventeen participants (84%) were analyzed who completed 6 months of study participation. Thirteen percent (9/69) and 17% (12/69) developed a recurrent or new VLU, respectively; 29% (14/48) and 13% (6/48) developed a recurrent or new DFU, respectively. One person in the DFU group developed both a recurrent and new ulcer. For 9 recurrent VLUs, 6 (66.7%) recurred in the MUSTCOOL group and 3 (33.3%) receiving the placebo. Of the 15 recurrent DFUs (includes individual who developed both a recurrent and new ulcer), 10 (66.7%) recurred in the MUSTCOOL group and 5 (33.3%) receiving the placebo., Conclusions: While the incidence of ulcer recurrent was slightly higher in the MUSTCOOL group, this finding was not considered clinically relevant. Overall ulcer recurrence during the 6-month study period was lower than reports in the literature, the time frame in which recurrence rates are highest., Trial Registration: The study was prospectively registered with ClinicalTrials.gov on December 10, 2015 (Identifier: NCT02626156)-https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02626156., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to report., (Copyright © 2021 by the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society.)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of an mHealth application (app), self-management physical activity intervention FOOTFIT with an added patient-provider connectivity feature (FOOTFIT+), that was designed to strengthen the lower extremities of minimally ambulatory individuals with venous leg ulcers (VLUs)., Design: Randomized controlled trial., Subjects and Setting: Twenty-four adults 18 years and older with VLUs being treated in 2 wound clinics in the Southeastern United States participated in this study., Methods: Preliminary estimates and 95% confidence intervals for the medians of short-term functional impacts on foot function, strength, ankle range of motion, walking capacity, depression, and physical functioning were obtained pre- and postassessment after the 6-week intervention trial., Results: There were negligible changes in either group for foot function. It is noted that both groups experienced substantial foot and ankle impairment at baseline. The greatest improvement in range of motion was noted in the FOOTFIT group for dorsiflexion of the right ankle (4.6 ± 5.22 lb/in over baseline) whereas strength decreased in both ankles for dorsiflexion and plantar flexion in the FOOTFIT+ group. No improvements were noted in walking distance or physical health for FOOTFIT (slight decrease -2.9 ± 5.6) and FOOTFIT+ (slight increase 3.0 ± 6.6) during the 6-week study period., Conclusions: In a minimally ambulatory population with VLUs, our mHealth FOOTFIT intervention composed of progressive exercise "boosts" demonstrated minimal short-term effects. We recommend engagement with the app for a longer period to determine longer-term outcomes of lower extremity function.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of a self-administered cooling treatment on clinically meaningful differences (CMDs) in symptom changes in patients with chronic venous disease., Design: Blinded, prospective, randomized controlled trial., Subjects and Setting: Two hundred seventy-six community-dwelling adults 21 years and older with skin changes and/or a healed venous leg ulcer (Clinical-Etiologic-Anatomic-Pathologic [CEAP] 4 and 5 classification) completed the 6-month active treatment period., Methods: Participants were recruited from wound and medicine clinics and from the general population through referrals or advertisements. Participants were randomly allocated to a sham control cuff or interventional cooling cuff group. Demographic and symptom-specific data were collected at baseline and at months 1, 3, and 6 with the 11-item symptom Venous Insufficiency Epidemiological and Economic Study Quality of Life/Symptom (VEINES QOL/Sym) questionnaire subscale for heavy legs, aching legs, swelling, night cramps, heating or burning sensation, restless legs, throbbing, itching, tingling sensation (pins and needles), pain, and irritability. Participants in the intervention group received a cooling gel cuff and those in the control group received a cotton-filled cuff to be place around the most affected lower leg during leg elevation. Both groups received standard of care for their chronic venous disease with compression wraps and skin hygiene. Dosing consisted of daily 30-minute treatment for 1 month, twice weekly for 2 months, and then thrice weekly for 3 months. To analyze and compare data, a mixed percentage clinically meaningful percentage change was used to assess CMDs in symptoms between groups for treatment modality, sex, and age group., Results: All symptoms showed improvement, with throbbing, aching, itching, and pain demonstrating the greatest CMD in response to the cooling treatment. For throbbing and aching, similar improvements were noted in response to cooling; 50% in the cooling group showed improvement, whereas 60% in both groups responded favorably to pain. More than 50% of females and males reported improvements in throbbing; both males and females reported 60% improvements in pain in response to cooling. In contrast, far fewer females reported worsening of aching in the treatment group as compared to male participants (8% vs 20%). Age differences were noted for throbbing in the younger group (<65 years of age); older individuals 65 years or older saw CMDs in aching in response to cooling., Conclusions: Of the 11 symptoms, aching, throbbing, itching, and pain had greater clinically meaningful improvements in response to a cooling cuff applied to lower leg skin affected by chronic venous disease. These CMDs inform evidence-based practice by enhancing clinician understanding of which symptoms, physical, physiological, and behavioral outcomes, respond to treatment change in a meaningful way for the patient.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to conduct validity and reliability testing of a novel quantitative instrument, the Symptom Intrusiveness Rating Scale (SyIRS), developed to assess health-related quality of life (HRQOL) based on individuals' perception of how symptoms associated with a chronic condition affect their quality of life. It was noted in a review of the literature that an instrument focusing on the impact of symptoms of HRQOL that can be used as a subjective assessment tool for all individuals with symptoms related to a chronic condition is currently not available., Design: Prospective observational study., Subjects and Setting: The sample was comprised of 50 participants experiencing pain associated with chronic wounds hospitalized in an urban 500-bed acute care hospital in the south central United States., Methods: Cognitive pretesting was conducted to test the construct of the SyIRS. Two experts in the field of HRQOL reviewed and scored statements on the SyIRS based on their relevance to HRQOL. Item-level content validity index (I-CVI) and scale-level content validity index average (S-CVI/Ave) were calculated to assess content validity. Internal consistency was tested using the Cronbach alpha. Test-retest reliability was obtained after administering the SyIRS twice over 2 weeks. The Pearson correlation was used to determine concurrent validity between the SyIRS and the SF-36v2 administered at the same time to confirm HRQOL as the construct on the SyIRS., Results: Cognitive pretesting indicated that participants interpreted the SyIRS instructions, statements, and response options as intended by the researchers. The SyIRS is a valid and reliable instrument with an S-CVI/Ave = 0.90, indicating the statement in the SyIRS all reflected HRQOL, Cronbach α = 0.904 indicated the instrument has good reliability based on internal consistency. Test-retest of SyIRS showed a strong positive correlation (r = 0.92, P < .005), indicating acceptable test-retest reliability. Correlation between the 2 subscales of SyIRS with SF-36v2 indicated moderate correlation on initial instrument completion (r = -0.56, P < .005, and r = -0.46, P < .001) as well as on the second completion (r = -0.55, P < .005, and r = -0.53, P < .005)., Conclusions: The SyIRS is a valid and reliable instrument to use for assessing HRQOL based on the perceptions of the impact symptoms associated with a chronic condition.

The purpose of this exploratory pilot study was two-fold: (a) to determine the reliability of the instrument to measure nurses' knowledge of artificial nutrition and hydration, and (b) to assess home healthcare nurses' knowledge of artificial nutrition and hydration. A cross-sectional design was used to administer the questionnaire to 91 home healthcare nurses in North Carolina; 33 questionnaires were returned. Results revealed an accurate answer rate of 73% and Cronbach's alpha was 0.71, indicating adequate internal consistency reliability.

Purpose: We compared a WOC nurse-directed, patient-centered intervention called MECALF (motivational enhancement and conditioning activity for leg function) compared to conditioning activities for lower leg function (CALF) alone. Outcomes were study feasibility, pain, motivation, self-efficacy, physical activity, leg strength, and range of motion., Design: Comparative study., Subjects and Setting: The sample was drawn from 2 wound centers in the Southeastern United States. Twenty-one patients (n = 12 MECALF site A and n = 9 CALF site B) with painful lower legs and critically colonized/infected wounds participated in the study., Methods: All patients received usual wound care per center protocol. The MECALF intervention was delivered by WOC nurses for 6 weeks at site A and a handout of CALF depicting the conditioning activities was provided by site staff (not WOC nurses) to patients at site B. We assessed study feasibility with postsurvey questionnaires given to WOC nurses (training usefulness, ease of use of ME with patients) and subjects (able to perform activities, use logs). Pre- and postintervention outcome data were collected by study staff using pain, motivation, and self-efficacy scales, functional measures of physical activity, and physical measures of strength and range of motion., Results: The study was found to be somewhat feasible by the WOC nurses and patients. WOC nurses had time management problems using MECALF during usual patient care. Patients reported that they were able to perform CALF. Overall pain was statistically significantly reduced (P = .046) in both groups of patients with painful critically colonized/infected leg ulcers measured at week 8, 2 weeks after the study period. The CALF group experienced a slightly greater reduction in pain intensity than did the MECALF group. No statistically significant differences between the groups were observed in behavioral outcomes for motivation (P = .641) and self-efficacy (P = .643), or for physical outcomes including overall ankle strength (P = .609) and ankle range of motion (P = .498). Functional and physical activity scores revealed no statistically significant differences in 3 measures, including Timed Up and Go test (P = .624), Timed Chair Standing Test (P = .686), or the Community Health Activities Model for Seniors (P = .803)., Conclusion: While somewhat feasible to implement in the wound care setting, no improvement in outcomes was observed with the addition of the WOC nurse-directed intervention. However, pain in the lower legs of patients with critically colonized/infected wounds in both groups improved after a 6-week behavioral/physical activity intervention. A larger trial is needed to further elucidate these findings.

The provision of breast milk to premature VLBW infants is associated with significant health benefits. Unfortunately, the delivery of breast milk to these vulnerable infants is often limited due to insufficient maternal milk supply. Several interventions have been investigated with respect to increasing milk volume in mothers of VLBW infants but confusion exists concerning the interventions' effectiveness. The purpose of this systematic review is to critique the evidence regarding specific milk expression strategies that aim to improve milk volume in mothers of VLBW infants.Published article references, electronic databases, dissertations and theses, and select conference proceedings were searched with the goal of finding studies that target VLBW infants and milk expression techniques in which breast milk volume was an outcome. Analysis of evidence revealed an association between increased milk volume and early initiation of expression, increased frequency of expression, and provision of kangaroo care. The use of simultaneous or sequential milk expression and duration of milk expression sessions were not found to significantly improve milk volume. These results may be used to formulate specific strategies designed to increase breast milk volume in this population.