Risk reduction and management of delirium

Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, March 2019

This guideline provides recommendations based on current evidence for best practice in the detection, assessment, treatment and follow up of adults with delirium, as well as reducing the risk of delirium. The guideline applies to all settings: home, long-term care, hospital, and hospice.

Fulltext available at the SIGN website

Acupuncture therapy improves health-related quality of life in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 2019 35 (May) p. 208-218
Po-Chun Hsieh; Mei-ChenYang; Yao-Kuang Wu; et al

The conclusions of this review are that body acupuncture therapy is an effective adjunctive non-pharmacological treatment to improve HRQL in patients under medical treatment for COPD. The authors suggest that BAT should be considered as one of the methods of management in patients with COPD.

Systematic bias in cancer patient-reported outcomes: symptom 'orphans' and 'champions'.

BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care, 2019 9(1) p. 67-74
Thomas, Shirley; Walsh, Declan; Aktas, Aynur

In this context, 'orphans' were defined as any symptom not assessed in any of the six selected instruments referenced; 'champions', in contrast, were present in all six. Of 46 checklist cancer symptoms, over a third were orphans. Only 5 checklist symptoms were champions: fatigue, pain, anorexia, dyspnoea and nausea. The bias appears to disproportionately affect gastrointestinal and neuropsychiatric symptoms. It's suggested that symptom studies should specifically report the limitations and account for the inherent item bias of any instrument used.

Fulltext available in Arthur Rank Hospice Library, Cambridge