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The objective of this study was to assess the direct and indirect (via perceived stress) effects of different types of pandemic-related concerns and increased alcohol use among adult women in the United States (US). We conducted a secondary analysis of cross-sectional survey data from April 2020 for adult females in the US who use alcohol (n = 1,089). The indirect effect model accounted for 19% of the variance in perceived stress and 8% of the variance in reporting increased alcohol use compared to no change or decreased use. Path analysis results indicated that concerns about isolation (odds ratio [OR] = 1.027, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.013–1.046), job/finances (OR = 1.025, 95% CI = 1.007–1.065), basic needs (OR = 1.021, 95% CI = 1.008–1.047), and concerns about government (OR = 1.038, 95% CI = 1.014–1.179]) were significantly related to reporting increased alcohol use through perceived stress. These findings can inform timely public health interventions to minimize alcohol-related harm among women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caregivers promote heart failure self-care, yet little is known about how relationship quality and dyad gender influences self-care. The purpose of this study was to evauluate the contribution of dyad gender and relationship quality on heart failure self-care. The study was a secondary analysis from a heart failure self-care intervention. Dyad gender was categorized by patient-caregiver gender as Male-Male (M + M), Female-Female (F + F), Female-Male (Fp + Mc), and Male-Female (Mp + Fc). The Self-Care of Heart Failure Index v.6.2 measured self-care. The Mutuality Scale assessed relationship quality. Univariate linear regression identified determinants of patient self-care maintenance and self-efficacy. The sample (n = 503) was 48% Mp + Fc, 27% F + F, 15% Fp + Mc, and 10% M + M. Better caregiver mutuality in M + M dyads was associated with lower self-care maintenance (b = −7.45, 95% CI [−13.80, −1.11]) and self-efficacy (b = −18.07, 95% CI [−29.11, −7.04]). Better patient mutuality was associated with higher self-efficacy for M + M dyads (b = 12.63, 95% CI [2.18, 23.09]). Mutuality and dyad gender appear important for self-care. Consider the role of gender in the dyad in behavioral interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of breathing exercises given by telemedicine in post-Covid-19 dyspneic individuals. Individuals in the intervention group (n : 26) were asked to perform breathing exercise three times a day for 5 weeks (one session performed via telemedicine each week). Individuals in the control group (n : 26) were given a brochure explaining the exercises. The St George's Respiratory Questionnaire, Pulmonary function tests, and six-minute-walk-tests were administered to all individuals at the beginning and end of the study. The posttest FEV1, FVC, MVV values were significantly higher than the pretest values in the intervention group (p2 <.001) whereas no significant differences were found in the control group. Six-minute-walk-distance increased by 54.27 m in the intervention group and 4.69 m in the control group. With breathing exercise training applied through telemedicine, improvements were observed in the pulmonary functions, quality of life, and exercise capacities of dyspneic post-Covid-19 individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stigma contributes to the burden of individuals and families affected by Sickle cell disease (SCD) and causes delay in appropriate care seeking. The aim of this study is to examine the levels and associations between stigma, social support, self-efficacy, and self-care actions among adult patients with SCD in Oman using a cross-sectional, correlational design. Of the 264 participants, 56.1% (n = 148) were males, with mean age of 30.1 years (SD 7.7). Half of the participants were married, and 88.3% had no other associated diseases. The results demonstrate that patients in Oman suffer from health-related stigma. However, social support, self-efficacy, and self-care actions were reported to be high and correlated with several clinical and demographic variables. Based on the results, effective, low-cost interventions such as psycho-educational groups, individual counseling, or group therapies might be developed. They can promote belief in enhanced efficacy and improved SCD adaptation, thereby increasing patient, and provider satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A retrospective cohort study of hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPI) reported an incidence rate of 34.3% based on 582 medical records of adult patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a medium-complexity public hospital in 2017 and 2018. Sixty percent of the patients used respirators, 49.3% presented hypotension, and 48.1% used norepinephrine. The main individual predictors of HAPI in the ICU were "days of norepinephrine" with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.625 (95% CI: 1.473–1.792) and concordance statistic (AUC) of 0.818 (95% CI: 0.779–0.857), "days of mechanical ventilation" with an OR of 1.521 (1.416–1.634) and AUC of 0.879 (0.849–0.909), "ICU stay (days)" with an OR of 1.279 (1.218–1.342) and AUC of 0.846 (0.812–0.881), and "Braden's sensory perception" with an OR of 0.345 (95% CI: 0.278–0.429) and AUC of 0.760 (0.722–0.799). The duration of mechanical ventilation, norepinephrine administration, and ICU length of stay presented significant discriminative capacity for HAPI prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore the pre- and postoperative differences in quality of life and perceived social support of Female-to-Male transsexual patients who underwent mastectomy and complete hysterectomy. Sixty-three Female-to-Male female individuals who underwent complete hysterectomy and mastectomy between November 2019 and November 2020 were included in this study. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale Short Form. The pre- and postoperative perceived social support mean scores of patients were 57.2 ± 9.0 and 74.9 ± 7.3, respectively. The pre- and postoperative quality of life mean scores of patients were 76.9 ± 8.3 and 107.8 ± 10.1, respectively. There were statistically significant differences between the measurements (p < .05). In addition, the patients whose education level was primary school, whose income was less than their expenditure, whose father was a primary school graduate, whose family had a strict family opinion on sexuality, whose family had a traditional view, and who had a high body mass index were found to have higher postoperative social support perceptions and quality of life. The patients' postoperative quality of life and perceived social support improved after sex reassignment surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both quality of life (QoL) and caregiver burden are essential constructs in patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH) however; their relationship has never been investigated before. The aim of this study was to evaluate if there was any relationship between patients' QoL and caregiver burden. Patients with PH and their caregivers were included. Patients' age, sex, World Health Organization (WHO) functional class, systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (sPAP), and six-minute walk distances (6MWD) were recorded. Patients' QoL was assessed using emPHasis-10 and caregiver burden with the Zarit Caregiver Burden Scale. 72 patient-caregiver dyads were included. Caregiver burden was significantly correlated with the QoL(r = 0.39 p <.003), but was not correlated with other clinical parameters. Patients' QoL showed significant negative correlation with the 6MWD(r = −0.46 p <.005). There is a moderate correlation between QoL and caregiver burden. Clinical parameters influence QoL, but they do not affect caregiver burden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to verify the feasibility of a video-based preoperative educational intervention plus one-to-one, nurse-led reinforcement discussion in patients undergoing elective major surgery and to assess the impact of this combined intervention on patient- and nurse-perceived patient knowledge, self-efficacy, and resilience. Patients received written material at pre-admission and were offered the intervention at admission. Patients reported their knowledge and self-efficacy at pre-admission and after the intervention, and resilience at pre-admission and discharge. Nurses assessed patients' knowledge and self-efficacy after the intervention. In all, 88/97 (90.7%) patients completed the intervention. The 80 patients with complete data reported a significant increase in their knowledge (p <.001) and self-efficacy (p <.001), but no difference in resilience (p =.72). Nurse-perceived patient knowledge agreed with patients' perceptions (p =.57) but nurses scored patients' self-efficacy lower (p <.001). The combined intervention was feasible, and patients perceived an improvement in their knowledge and self-efficacy. Nurses' assessment partially agreed with patients' perceptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intrinsically adaptive or maladaptive nature of certain activity patterns in fibromyalgia (FM) has been put into question. The role of contextual factors related to their influence on functional limitation is required. Perfectionism complicates the ability to cope of these patients. The aim of the study has been to analyze the moderating role of perfectionism between activity patterns and functional limitation. The sample were 228 women with FM. Moderation analyses were conducted with the PROCESS Macro. Activity avoidance and excessive persistence were associated with poorer functionality, regardless of perfectionism. Pain avoidance and task persistence were more strongly associated with FM impact in women with high or moderate levels of perfectionism. In a clinical setting adapting the recommendations given to patients according to their level of perfectionism would be justified. Pain avoidance might be inadvisable at high levels of perfectionism, and task persistence is recommendable especially when perfectionism is high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer patients experience a considerable number of symptoms during the course of their disease. Of these symptoms, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is one of the most reported and it increases the cancer burden on patients. This study aims to assess the current status of CINV among Jordanian cancer patients, with regard to its incidence and management. A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was used. The study sample was 185 cancer patients. The mean age of participants was 46.6 years (SD = 15.5, range = 18-76) and were mainly female (56.8%). The incidence of nausea and vomiting was high at 71.4% and 57.3%, respectively. Most of the patients (89.7%) received a 5-HT3 antagonist therapy combined with corticosteroids therapy (81.1%). This study demonstrated a high incidence rate of all types of CINV, which was undertreated. Antiemetic treatment could be improved by encouraging nurses to introduce the internationally agreed guidelines into their daily clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemorrhoidectomy is the current best treatment for severe hemorrhoids, but it causes significant postoperative pain and anxiety, which is associated with heart rate variability (HRV). Transcutaneous acupoint electrical stimulation (TAES) was assumed to alleviate pain and anxiety, and modify the autonomic nervous system. This study aimed to examine the effects of TAES intervention on postoperative pain, anxiety, and HRV in patients who received a hemorrhoidectomy. A randomized-controlled trial with five repeated measures was conducted. The TAES group (n = 39) received four 20-min sessions of electrical stimulation at chengshan (BL57) and erbai (EX-UE2) after hemorrhoidectomy, whereas the control group (n = 41) did not. Data were collected using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), State Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and HRV physiological signal monitor. TAES resulted in a significant group difference in pain scores, anxiety levels, and some HRV parameters. The findings indicate that TAES can help reduce pain and anxiety associated with hemorrhoidectomy. TAES is a noninvasive, simple, and convenient modality for post-hemorrhoidectomy-associated pain control and anxiety reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying those at risk of poor outcomes after hospital discharge is a central focus of health care systems. Our purpose was to better understand whether and how patient- and nurse-assessed readiness for discharge (Pt- and RN-RHDS) is related to patient experiences after discharge. We conducted a prospective survey of 70 Veterans and their assigned nurses on the day of, and again with Veterans 2 weeks after, hospital discharge. The predictive model for post-discharge coping difficulty included educational level (p = .05) and an interaction between Pt-RHDS ratings and Pt-RN RHDS discordance (p = .01). The predictive model for patient-reported quality of hospital to home transition experience included Pt-RN RHDS discordance and an interaction between Pt-RHDS and the number of people living with the patient (p = .05). Our findings demonstrate that agreement between Pt -and RN-RHDS may be an important measure in work aiming to improve patient outcomes post-hospitalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]