Publicação
Pain and health-related quality of life in children with cancer
| Resumo: | Abstract Objective: This study aimed at correlating pain experiences in children with cancer and their health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Methodology: Descriptive cross-sectional study that included children aged between 8 and 17 years who had been admitted to two Portuguese pediatric oncology units. Children were selected consecutively and randomly between April, 2013, and May, 2014. Data were collected on the first day of admission and pain was measured through the use of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool1 and the HRQOL using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory - Cancer Module 3.02. A total of 75 children with a median age of 15 years and an interquartile range (IQR) of 4 years participated in the study. Most of them were boys (n=54; 72%), with a leukemia diagnosis (n=38; 50.7%). The mean time of diagnosis was four months (±10 months). Results: The intensity of pain reported by children ranged between 0 and 7.9, with a median of 1. About 38 children (50.7%) reported no pain. The number of sites of pain ranged between 0 and 16, with a median of 2 sites. The mean HRQOL was 66.0 ±13.3. The highest score was obtained in the "perceived physical appearance" subscale (79.0 ±21.2) and "treatment anxiety" subscale (79.0 ±27.2), whereas the worst score was obtained in the "worry" subscale (39.2 ±28.1). The correlation between pain intensity and HRQOL was statistically not significant (rsp=-0.12; p>0.05), similar to the correlation between the number of sites of pain and HRQOL (rsp=-0.09; p>0.05). Conclusion: Although pain is a frequent symptom in children with cancer, this experience did not seem to affect their HRQOL. However, further studies are needed to find health care-sensitive areas of intervention that influence the HRQOL of children with cancer. |
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| Autores principais: | Batalha, Luís Manuel da Cunha |
| Outros Autores: | Fernandes, Ananda Maria; Campos, Diana Catarina Ferreira de; Gonçalves, Ana Maria Pacheco Mendes Perdigão da Costa; Oliveira, Armando Luis Dinis Mónica |
| Assunto: | pain quality of life Cancer nursing |
| Ano: | 2015 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | outro |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Escola Superior de Enfermagem de Coimbra |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório Científico da Escola Superior de Enfermagem de Coimbra |
| Resumo: | Abstract Objective: This study aimed at correlating pain experiences in children with cancer and their health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Methodology: Descriptive cross-sectional study that included children aged between 8 and 17 years who had been admitted to two Portuguese pediatric oncology units. Children were selected consecutively and randomly between April, 2013, and May, 2014. Data were collected on the first day of admission and pain was measured through the use of the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool1 and the HRQOL using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory - Cancer Module 3.02. A total of 75 children with a median age of 15 years and an interquartile range (IQR) of 4 years participated in the study. Most of them were boys (n=54; 72%), with a leukemia diagnosis (n=38; 50.7%). The mean time of diagnosis was four months (±10 months). Results: The intensity of pain reported by children ranged between 0 and 7.9, with a median of 1. About 38 children (50.7%) reported no pain. The number of sites of pain ranged between 0 and 16, with a median of 2 sites. The mean HRQOL was 66.0 ±13.3. The highest score was obtained in the "perceived physical appearance" subscale (79.0 ±21.2) and "treatment anxiety" subscale (79.0 ±27.2), whereas the worst score was obtained in the "worry" subscale (39.2 ±28.1). The correlation between pain intensity and HRQOL was statistically not significant (rsp=-0.12; p>0.05), similar to the correlation between the number of sites of pain and HRQOL (rsp=-0.09; p>0.05). Conclusion: Although pain is a frequent symptom in children with cancer, this experience did not seem to affect their HRQOL. However, further studies are needed to find health care-sensitive areas of intervention that influence the HRQOL of children with cancer. |
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