Biomedical subjects

Suzanne C Danhauer

Publications and source records attributed to Suzanne C Danhauer.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2007

Monitoring health outcomes following cytoreductive surgery plus intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy for peritoneal carcinomatosis.

BACKGROUND: Cytoreductive surgery with intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy for peritoneal carcinomitosis (PC) is an aggressive treatment designed to alleviate symptoms and prolong life. It is associated with physical and psychological morbidity. The purpose of this study was to monitor health outcomes related to treatment. METHODS: Patients completed a questionnaire before and after surgery at 3, 6 and 12 months. The questionnaire consisted of basic demographic items as well as the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Colon Scale (FACT-C), SF-36 Medical Outcomes Study Health Survey, Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D), Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form, and ECOG Performance Status Rating. Time trends were assessed with mixed models (SAS PROC MIXED) so as to use all data and to account for missing data. RESULTS: Ninety-six patients (49% females, 9% African Americans) of an average age of 52.9 (SD = 12.5) years were assessed before surgery. PC originated in primary lesions of the appendix (n = 36); colon/rectum (n = 24); mesothelium (n = 9); ovary (n = 5); stomach (n = 4); and miscellaneous (n = 18). Quality of life (QOL) and pain scores improved from baseline to 12 months. Physical functioning changed over the 12-month study period with improvement recorded at 6 months. The percentage of patients reporting significant depressive symptom at each time point was; baseline = 32%; 3 months = 19%; 6 & 12 months = 24%. CONCLUSIONS: Acceptable QOL, return of functional status, and reduced pain can be attained between 3 and 6 months following treatment although some deficits in general health remain. Depressive symptoms are common and should be monitored.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2007

Music or guided imagery for women undergoing colposcopy: a randomized controlled study of effects on anxiety, perceived pain, and patient satisfaction.

OBJECTIVE: It was hypothesized that music or guided imagery versus usual care would result in less anxiety and perceived pain for colposcopy patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients were randomized to music, guided imagery, or usual care after completing a baseline questionnaire. All patients completed a postprocedure questionnaire. RESULTS: Study participants (N=170) had a mean age of 28.4 years (SD=9.6; range 18-60) and formed a racially diverse group. Education/income levels were low. No between-group differences were found for postprocedure anxiety or pain rating. CONCLUSIONS: Mind-body interventions had no statistically significant impact on reported anxiety, perceived pain, or satisfaction with care, even for those who anticipated the most pain or started with high anxiety.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Music as therapy.

Music is widely used to enhance well-being, reduce stress, and distract patients from unpleasant symptoms. Although there are wide variations in individual preferences, music appears to exert direct physiologic effects through the autonomic nervous system. It also has indirect effects by modifying caregiver behavior. Music effectively reduces anxiety and improves mood for medical and surgical patients, for patients in intensive care units and patients undergoing procedures, and for children as well as adults. Music is a low-cost intervention that often reduces surgical, procedural, acute, and chronic pain. Music also improves the quality of life for patients receiving palliative care, enhancing a sense of comfort and relaxation. Providing music to caregivers may be a cost-effective and enjoyable strategy to improve empathy, compassion, and relationship-centered care while not increasing errors or interfering with technical aspects of care.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2004

Successful dietary changes in a cardiovascular risk reduction intervention are differentially predicted by biopsychosocial characteristics.

BACKGROUND: Psychosocial factors have demonstrated associations with both prognosis of patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) as well as the development of CVD. Psychosocial distress may influence health behaviors (such as eating behavior) that increase cardiovascular risk. METHOD: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the role of psychosocial distress on intake of high-fat snacks and fruits and vegetables in 740 men and women, identified as high risk for cardiovascular disease, who took part in a 1-year cardiovascular risk factor reduction program. RESULTS: Participants who were more successful at decreasing or staying at an optimal level of high-fat food intake had lower levels of baseline total psychosocial distress and worry and decreases in total psychosocial distress. A greater success rate at increasing fruit and vegetable intake or staying at an optimal level of fruit and vegetable intake was associated with changes in Type A and competing behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Results from these analyses suggest that baseline levels and changes in psychosocial variables, particularly decreased psychosocial distress, were associated with improvements in healthful eating behaviors. Further work may provide information that could be useful in tailoring health behavior interventions to specific subgroups based on psychosocial characteristics, initial health behaviors, and demographic characteristics.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Do behavioral disturbances in persons with Alzheimer's disease predict caregiver depression over time?

Random effects models were used to examine the association between behavioral disturbances in persons with Alzheimer's disease (N = 90) and caregiver depressive symptoms at 2-month intervals over an 18-month period. There was substantial variability in trajectories of change in caregiver depressive symptoms over time but no systematic increase in distress despite increased severity of dementia symptoms. Total behavioral disturbances were associated with higher levels of caregiver depressive symptoms: this effect was primarily attributable to aggressive behaviors. No consistent departure from linearity was evident in the relationship between behavior and depression over time.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Impact of criteria-based diagnosis of burning mouth syndrome on treatment outcome.

AIMS: Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) primarily affects postmenopausal women and is often difficult to treat successfully. Treatment outcomes have been problematic because of failure to distinguish between patients with BMS and patients presenting with oral burning (OB) resulting from other clinical abnormalities. The purpose of this study was to determine characteristics that might uniquely identify BMS patients from patients with OB and to determine whether proper classification influences treatment outcome. METHODS: The clinical sample consisted of 69 patients (83% female) with an average age of 62 years, pain duration of 2.45 years, and visual analog scale pain rating of 49 mm (rated from 0 to 100 mm). All patients underwent a clinical exam and completed the Multidimensional Pain Inventory and Symptom Checklist 90-Revised. RESULTS: There were no differences between the BMS and OB groups with respect to age, pain duration, pain intensity, life interference, and levels of psychologic distress. Patients with OB demonstrated more clinical abnormalities than BMS patients. Hyposalivation and greater use of prescription medications, most notably hormone replacement therapy, were more common in the OB group compared with the BMS group. When treatment was provided that corrected an identifiable abnormality, significantly more OB than BMS patients reported greater than 50% relief from baseline pain rating. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that while BMS and OB groups may initially present with similar clinical and psychosocial features, they are distinguishable with careful diagnosis that often enables successful management of symptoms for each group.

Adult↗