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Palliative care for children with a yet undiagnosed syndrome
- Source :
- European journal of pediatrics. 176(10)
- Publication Year :
- 2017
-
Abstract
- The number of children without a diagnosis in pediatric palliative home care and the process of decision-making in these children are widely unknown. The study was conducted as single-center retrospective cohort study. Between January 2013 and September 2016, 198 children and young adults were cared for; 27 (13.6%) of these were without a clear diagnosis at the start of pediatric palliative home care. A definite diagnosis was ultimately achieved in three children. Median age was 7 years (0-25), duration of care 569 days (2-2638), and number of home visits 7.5 (2-46). Most patients are still alive (19; 70.4%). Median number of drugs administered was eight (range 2-19); antiepileptics were given most frequently. Despite the lack of a clear diagnosis (and thus prognosis), 13 (48.1%) parents faced with their critically ill and clinically deteriorating children decided in favor of a DNAR order. Comparing this with 15 brain-injured children, signs, symptoms, and supportive needs were similar in both groups.Children without a clear diagnosis are relatively common in pediatric palliative care and have-like all other patients-the right to receive optimized and symptom-adapted palliative care. Parents are less likely to choose treatment limitation for children who lack a definitive diagnosis. What is Known: • A clear diagnosis is usually considered important for best-practice pediatric palliative care (PPC) including advanced care planning (ACP). • Timely initiation of pediatric palliative care (PPC) is highly recommended in children with life-limiting conditions. What is New: • SWAN (syndrome without a name) children show similar signs and symptoms (mostly neurological) and have similar supportive needs as brain-injured children. • Defining treatment limitations in advance care planning is more difficult for parents of SWAN compared to brain-injured children.
- Subjects :
- Male
Parents
Pediatrics
medicine.medical_specialty
Palliative care
Delayed Diagnosis
Adolescent
Clinical Decision-Making
Decision Making
03 medical and health sciences
Advance Care Planning
Young Adult
0302 clinical medicine
Professional-Family Relations
Germany
Medicine
Humans
030212 general & internal medicine
Young adult
Intensive care medicine
Child
Retrospective Studies
Terminal Care
business.industry
Critically ill
Palliative Care
Infant, Newborn
Infant
Retrospective cohort study
Syndrome
Pediatric palliative care
Home visits
Withholding Treatment
030220 oncology & carcinogenesis
Child, Preschool
Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health
Female
business
End-of-life care
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14321076
- Volume :
- 176
- Issue :
- 10
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- European journal of pediatrics
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....d07af878bb8d26f4e3716ae58ea30856