Delayed gastric emptying, that manifests clinically as intolerance to enteral feeding, occurs in over 50% of critically ill patients and has a major impact on patient morbidity and mortality. Despite the recognition that the proximal stomach has a major role in gastric emptying of liquids, only the motor activity of the antro-pyloro-duodenal region has been evaluated in detail. In addition, many of the proposed risk factors for the gastric dysmotility, particularly a prior history of diabetes mellitus, have not been evaluated formally but have been extrapolated from data from non-critically ill patients. The currently available prokinetic drugs, erythromycin and metoclopramide, are considered to be the first line treatment for feed intolerance. However, neither data comparing the effectiveness of these agents nor the data on the effects of combination of therapy in the treatment of feed intolerance are available. The aims of this thesis were, therefore, to examine: (i) proximal gastric motor activity and the association between proximal and distal motility; (ii) the relationship between entero-gastric humoral responses to nutrients, gastric emptying and feed intolerance; (iii) the impact of admission diagnoses, choice of sedations, timing of initiation of feeding, and pre-existing history of diabetes mellitus on gastric emptying and feed intolerance; and (iv) the efficacy of erythromycin, metoclopramide and combination of these drugs in treatment of feed intolerance in critically ill patients. The current thesis indicates that motor activity is impaired in multiple regions of the stomach in the critically ill. When compared to healthy humans, proximal gastric relaxation was prolonged and fundic wave activity was educed during small intestinal nutrient infusion in critically ill patients. In addition, simultaneous assessment of proximal and distal gastric motility demonstrated a possible disruption of the motor integration between the proximal and distal stomach. In light of the recent data that suggested a significantly greater proportion of meal distributed proximally in critically ill patients with delayed gastric emptying (Nguyen, et al. 2006), the disruption of the gastric motor integration and the prolonged gastric relaxation in response to duodenal nutrients may play a significant role in the pathogenesis of slow gastric emptying during critical illness, especially as liquid formulae. The entero-gastric hormonal feedback responses were also disturbed during critical illness. Both fasting and duodenal nutrient-stimulated plasma CCK and PYY concentrations were significantly higher in critically ill patients, particularly those who did not tolerated gastric feeds. The rate of gastric emptying of a liquid meal was inversely related to both fasting and postprandial plasma CCK and PYY concentrations, supporting the potential role of plasma CCK and PYY in the pathogenesis of gastric dysmotility in critically ill patients. Admission diagnosis, choice of sedative drug and blood glucose control but not the timing of enteral feeds were important factors for delayed gastric emptying and feed intolerance in these patients. In particular, delaying enteral feeding by 4 days had no impact on the rate of gastric emptying, intra-gastric meal distribution, or plasma CCK and PYY concentrations. Contrary to traditional belief, critically ill patients with a pre-existing diagnosis of type 2 DM have only a minor disturbance to the proximal stomach, a relatively normal gastric emptying and are at no higher risk of feed intolerance than those without DM, suggesting the presence of pre-existing DM 2 in critically ill patients should not influence the standard practice of gastric feeding. Therapeutically, short-term treatment with low dose erythromycin was more effective than metoclopramide, but the effectiveness decreased rapidly overtime at similar rate as observed with metoclopramide. In patients who failed to response to either agent, treatment with both agents was highly effective in re-establishing feeding success. The use of combination therapy as the initial treatment for feed intolerance was also more effective than erythromycin alone and had less tachyphylaxis. Treatment with erythromycin and metoclopramide, either as a single agent or in combination did not associated with major cardiovascular adverse side effects. Although diarrhoea was a common side effect and was highest with combination therapy, it was not associated with Clostridium difficile infection and settled quickly after the cessation of the prokinetic therapy. In summary, the work performed in the current thesis has provided substantial insights into the understanding of the nature, risk factors, pathogenesis and treatment of disturbed gastric motor function in critically ill patients. Not only do these findings stimulate further research into the mechanisms responsible for gastric dysmotility in critical illness, they also lead to the development of new strategies for optimizing the management of feed intolerance. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1320667 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Medicine, 2008

<p><strong>Bakgrund: </strong>När en patient blir svårt sjuk drabbas även de anhöriga. Det är av stor vikt att sjuksköterskan uppmärksammar de anhöriga, då de kan vara i behov av stöd och omvårdnad. Anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter kan uppleva känslor som rädsla, ensamhet, hjälplöshet samt osäkerhet. <strong>Syfte: </strong>Syftet var att beskriva mötet och interaktionen mellan sjuksköterskan och anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter. <strong>Metod: </strong>Studien är en allmän litteraturstudie baserad på kvalitativ och kvantitativ forskning. <strong>Resultat: </strong>Analysen resulterade i fem huvudkategorier; ”att skapa en relation med anhöriga”, ”information”, ”kommunikation”, ”emotionellt stöd” samt ”att göra anhöriga delaktiga”. Det framkom att information hade stor betydelse för de anhörigas välbefinnande samt att flera sjuksköterskor upplevde en osäkerhet inför de anhöriga. <strong>Slutsats: </strong>Anhöriga har ett stort behov av att informeras om patientens tillstånd. Som sjuksköterska är det viktigt att inte glömma de anhöriga utan att se till hela familjen. Utbildning och handledning krävs inom området, då sjuksköterskorna känner osäkerhet i mötet med anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter.</p> / <p><strong>Background:</strong> When a patient becomes seriously ill it also effects the patients relatives. It is essential for the nurse to pay attention to the relatives as they may need support and care as well. Relatives of seriously ill patients may experience feelings such as fear, loneliness and uncertainty. <strong>Aim:</strong> The aim was to describe the meeting and interaction between nurses and families of seriously ill patients. <strong>Method</strong>: The study was a general literature study based on qualitative and quantitative research. <strong>Result:</strong> The analysis resulted in five main categories; ”to create a relationship with relatives”, ”information”, ”communication”, ”emotional support” and ”making families involved”. It was revealed that the need for information had a significant impact on the families well being. Nurses experienced uncertainty about dealing with the families. <strong>Conclusion: </strong>Relatives have a great need to be informed about the patient’s condition. As a nurse, it is important not to forget about the families of the patient. More training and guidance are needed in this area, where nurses feel uncertain about meeting with relatives of seriously ill patients.</p>

Bakgrund: När en patient blir svårt sjuk drabbas även de anhöriga. Det är av stor vikt att sjuksköterskan uppmärksammar de anhöriga, då de kan vara i behov av stöd och omvårdnad. Anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter kan uppleva känslor som rädsla, ensamhet, hjälplöshet samt osäkerhet. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva mötet och interaktionen mellan sjuksköterskan och anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter. Metod: Studien är en allmän litteraturstudie baserad på kvalitativ och kvantitativ forskning. Resultat: Analysen resulterade i fem huvudkategorier; ”att skapa en relation med anhöriga”, ”information”, ”kommunikation”, ”emotionellt stöd” samt ”att göra anhöriga delaktiga”. Det framkom att information hade stor betydelse för de anhörigas välbefinnande samt att flera sjuksköterskor upplevde en osäkerhet inför de anhöriga. Slutsats: Anhöriga har ett stort behov av att informeras om patientens tillstånd. Som sjuksköterska är det viktigt att inte glömma de anhöriga utan att se till hela familjen. Utbildning och handledning krävs inom området, då sjuksköterskorna känner osäkerhet i mötet med anhöriga till svårt sjuka patienter. / Background: When a patient becomes seriously ill it also effects the patients relatives. It is essential for the nurse to pay attention to the relatives as they may need support and care as well. Relatives of seriously ill patients may experience feelings such as fear, loneliness and uncertainty. Aim: The aim was to describe the meeting and interaction between nurses and families of seriously ill patients. Method: The study was a general literature study based on qualitative and quantitative research. Result: The analysis resulted in five main categories; ”to create a relationship with relatives”, ”information”, ”communication”, ”emotional support” and ”making families involved”. It was revealed that the need for information had a significant impact on the families well being. Nurses experienced uncertainty about dealing with the families. Conclusion: Relatives have a great need to be informed about the patient’s condition. As a nurse, it is important not to forget about the families of the patient. More training and guidance are needed in this area, where nurses feel uncertain about meeting with relatives of seriously ill patients.

En intensivvårdssjuksköterska kommer i sin yrkesutövning ofta att möta närstående till svårt sjuka patienter. Tidigare studier har påvisat närståendes betydelse inom intensivvården och hur komplicerat samspelet med närstående kan vara, under de speciella omständigheter som råder på en intensivvårdsavdelning. Syftet med denna studie var att belysa intensivvårdssjuksköterskans erfarenheter av aspekter som bidrar till att främja ett gott samspel med patientens närstående. En kvalitativ ansats har använts i studien. Datainsamling utfördes via halvstrukturerade intervjuer, styrda av en intervjuguide. Tio intervjuer genomfördes med intensivvårdssjuksköterskor som arbetade på två olika intensivvårdsavdelningar i mellansverige. Inklusionskriterier var sjuksköterskor med specialistutbildning inom intensivvård med minst tre års erfarenhet av arbete inom specialiteten. Innehållsanalys av data genomfördes och tre huvudkategorier framträdde: Aspekter i intensivvårdsmiljön, Aspekter i den egna kompetensen samt Aspekter hos närstående. Resultatet visar att det finns åtskilliga aspekter, såväl i intensivvårdsmiljön som hos sjuksköterskorna själva samt hos de närstående, som kan bidra till att främja ett gott samspel. Intensivvårdsjuksköterskorna framhåller vikten av att vara förberedd samt att etablera en relation till de närstående. Hur väl detta lyckas påverkas av såväl yttre förutsättningar i intensivvårdsmiljön som den egna kompetensen. Resultatet indikerar även att färdigheter i att möta närstående erhålls genom yrkeserfarenhet, vilket väcker frågor om hur en oerfaren intensivvårdssjuksköterska hanterar samspelet med närstående. / A critical care nurse will in the course of her work often meet relatives of severely ill patients. Previous studies have confirmed the importance of relatives in intensive care and how complex the interaction with these may be, due to the special conditions existing in an intensive care unit. The purpose of this study was to highlight the critical care nurse's experiences of aspects that help improve a sound relationship with the patient's relatives. A qualitative approach was used in the study. Data collection was conducted through semi-structured interviews, guided by an interview guide. Ten interviews were conducted with ICU nurses who worked in two different intensive care units in central Sweden. Inclusion criteria were nurses with specialist training in intensive care, with at least three years experience of working in the ICU. Content analysis was conducted and three main categories emerged: Aspects of the intensive care environment, Aspects of their own competence and Aspects of significant others. The results show that there are several aspects. Both the intensive care environment, the nurses themselves as well as the patients relatives can help promote a sound relationship. Intensive care nurses stressed the importance of being prepared and to establish a relationship with the relatives. How well this succeeds is affected by both external conditions in the intensive care environment and the nurses own competence. The results also indicate that skills in meeting relatives is obtained by work experience, which raises questions about how an inexperienced ICU nurse does interact with relatives of patients.

Thesis (M.E.)--University of Canterbury, 2009. / Typescript (photocopy). "January 2009." Includes bibliographical references (p. [77]-89). Also available via the World Wide Web.

published_or_final_version / Nursing Studies / Master / Master of Nursing

The purpose of this qualitative research is to provide an in-depth exploration of the impact that a diagnosis of a terminal illness has on family functioning. The goal is to gain insight into adult children's personal experience when a parent is diagnosed with a terminal form of cancer. This study explores how families respond, adapt and cope when this specific family member is diagnosed with a terminal illness. It also explores any significant changes in relationships within the family and any shifts in the roles of the members and how they adjusted to such shifts. / The study is informed by a phenomenological paradigm and used an explorative, qualitative design, which included semi-structured interviews. Participant text and "found poetry" is used in order to present a more accurate account of the participants' experiences. Found poetry provides an opportunity to hear the participant's voices by taking direct quotes from their transcripts and forming them into a poem. Themes of denial, anger, helplessness, hope and anticipatory grief/mourning are portrayed in the findings of this study. The difficult emotional dilemmas and tensions that people have to work through when faced with a family member dying are discussed. The realization of the loss of future relationships will be identified as one of the greatest impacts of the illness. This study shows the lack of professional supports and resources that are available for each participant's family in being faced with the diagnosis of a terminal illness, and will address a needed consideration for social work practice.

Introduction: Outcome prediction tools have the potential to provide significant adjunctive information for intensivists. Critically ill obstetric and gynaecology patients constitute a unique subset of the general ICU (intensive care unit) population yet, there exists no outcome prediction model developed specifically for these patients. Objectives: To evaluate the APACHE II score, prospectively develop and validate an outcome prediction model, evaluate organ failure (Organ Failure score and SOFA score) and review the SIRS (Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome) response in a cohort of critically ill obstetric and gynaecology patients. Design: A prospective study conducted over a 2 year period in the Surgical ICU at King Edward VIII Hospital, Durban. Institutional ethics approval was obtained. Patients were allocated to one of the following categories: Obstetric hypertensive group (Group I), Obstetric non-hypertensive group (Group II) and Gynaecology group (Group III). Group III was further subdivided into a pregnant (Group IIIa) and a non-pregnant group (Group IIIb). Data captured included demographic details, clinical assessment, investigations, treatment, variables required for calculating the APACHE II score, organ failure (OF) assessment, SIRS criteria and patient outcome. The APACHE II system, organ failure assessment and SIRS was evaluated in the entire patient subset. For the purpose of the outcome prediction model, the subset was divided into 2 groups: a development group and a validation group. STATA 7 software was utilised for data analysis. Results: The dataset comprised 260 inpatients. Obstetrics and gynaecology cases represented 18.5 % of the total ICU population (n=1408). The majority of the patients were young (mean age 27 ± 10.5 years). The mean ICU stay was 5.5 ± 7.9 days. The observed mortality for Groups I, II, III, IIIa and IIIb was 23.4%, 43.2%, 42.9%, 33.3% and 55.5% respectively. The mean APACHE II score was significantly higher in nonsurvivors compared to survivors for all patient subgroups (p< 0.0001). However the APACHE II system performed variably in each of the 3 groups. The area under the curve for the ROC curves in each of the 3 main subgroups varied from 0.81 to 0.94 for APACHE II. Groups IIIa and IIIb were too small to permit ROC curve analysis. Age, mean arterial pressure, respiratory rate, temperature, the Glasgow Coma Scale score and pH were identified as significant outcome predictors. Using these parameters an obstetric and gynaecology outcome prediction (OGOP) model was developed for Groups I, II and III. The area under the curve for the ROC curves in each of the subgroups was >0.9 for the OGOP Model. A predictive equation could not be developed for Groups IIIa and IIIb (due to a small number of admissions in these two groups.) Duration and the number of organ failures, correlated with outcome. The duration and number of organ failures associated with mortality differed for each group. Three OF exceeding 72 hours, 3 OF exceeding 48 hours and 3 OF equal to 48 hours were invariably fatal in Groups I, II and III/IIIa/IIIb respectively. SOFA scores were significantly higher in nonsurvivors compared to survivors (p<0.0001). A day one SOFA score equal to 18 (Group I), 15 (Group ll) and 13 (Group III, IIIa, IIIb) was also invariably fatal. A SIRS response was noted in 94.2% of the patient cohort (245/260). The SIRS response varied in the subgroups. Sterile shock and septic shock were associated with a high mortality rate. Groups IIIa and IIIb differed with respect to the mean age, duration of hospital and ICU stay and mortality rate. Although these subsets were numerically restricted (24 and 18 admissions respectively), the results suggest that the two subsets are distinctly different in nature. Comment: The OGOP model is easier to calculate and it is superior to the APACHE II System. It needs to be validated in other local and international units. Organ failure assessment as well as the SIRS response provides useful supplementary outcome information. Although current outcome prediction tools are not designed for individual application, continued research and refinement of the available tools, as well as the exploration of novel methods, may one day result in "near-perfect" prediction estimates and further broaden the scope of their utility. / Thesis (Ph.D)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

Delayed gastric emptying, that manifests clinically as intolerance to enteral feeding, occurs in over 50% of critically ill patients and has a major impact on patient morbidity and mortality. Despite the recognition that the proximal stomach has a major role in gastric emptying of liquids, only the motor activity of the antro-pyloro-duodenal region has been evaluated in detail. In addition, many of the proposed risk factors for the gastric dysmotility, particularly a prior history of diabetes mellitus, have not been evaluated formally but have been extrapolated from data from non-critically ill patients. The currently available prokinetic drugs, erythromycin and metoclopramide, are considered to be the first line treatment for feed intolerance. However, neither data comparing the effectiveness of these agents nor the data on the effects of combination of therapy in the treatment of feed intolerance are available. The aims of this thesis were, therefore, to examine: (i) proximal gastric motor activity and the association between proximal and distal motility; (ii) the relationship between entero-gastric humoral responses to nutrients, gastric emptying and feed intolerance; (iii) the impact of admission diagnoses, choice of sedations, timing of initiation of feeding, and pre-existing history of diabetes mellitus on gastric emptying and feed intolerance; and (iv) the efficacy of erythromycin, metoclopramide and combination of these drugs in treatment of feed intolerance in critically ill patients. The current thesis indicates that motor activity is impaired in multiple regions of the stomach in the critically ill. When compared to healthy humans, proximal gastric relaxation was prolonged and fundic wave activity was educed during small intestinal nutrient infusion in critically ill patients. In addition, simultaneous assessment of proximal and distal gastric motility demonstrated a possible disruption of the motor integration between the proximal and distal stomach. In light of the recent data that suggested a significantly greater proportion of meal distributed proximally in critically ill patients with delayed gastric emptying (Nguyen, et al. 2006), the disruption of the gastric motor integration and the prolonged gastric relaxation in response to duodenal nutrients may play a significant role in the pathogenesis of slow gastric emptying during critical illness, especially as liquid formulae. The entero-gastric hormonal feedback responses were also disturbed during critical illness. Both fasting and duodenal nutrient-stimulated plasma CCK and PYY concentrations were significantly higher in critically ill patients, particularly those who did not tolerated gastric feeds. The rate of gastric emptying of a liquid meal was inversely related to both fasting and postprandial plasma CCK and PYY concentrations, supporting the potential role of plasma CCK and PYY in the pathogenesis of gastric dysmotility in critically ill patients. Admission diagnosis, choice of sedative drug and blood glucose control but not the timing of enteral feeds were important factors for delayed gastric emptying and feed intolerance in these patients. In particular, delaying enteral feeding by 4 days had no impact on the rate of gastric emptying, intra-gastric meal distribution, or plasma CCK and PYY concentrations. Contrary to traditional belief, critically ill patients with a pre-existing diagnosis of type 2 DM have only a minor disturbance to the proximal stomach, a relatively normal gastric emptying and are at no higher risk of feed intolerance than those without DM, suggesting the presence of pre-existing DM 2 in critically ill patients should not influence the standard practice of gastric feeding. Therapeutically, short-term treatment with low dose erythromycin was more effective than metoclopramide, but the effectiveness decreased rapidly overtime at similar rate as observed with metoclopramide. In patients who failed to response to either agent, treatment with both agents was highly effective in re-establishing feeding success. The use of combination therapy as the initial treatment for feed intolerance was also more effective than erythromycin alone and had less tachyphylaxis. Treatment with erythromycin and metoclopramide, either as a single agent or in combination did not associated with major cardiovascular adverse side effects. Although diarrhoea was a common side effect and was highest with combination therapy, it was not associated with Clostridium difficile infection and settled quickly after the cessation of the prokinetic therapy. In summary, the work performed in the current thesis has provided substantial insights into the understanding of the nature, risk factors, pathogenesis and treatment of disturbed gastric motor function in critically ill patients. Not only do these findings stimulate further research into the mechanisms responsible for gastric dysmotility in critical illness, they also lead to the development of new strategies for optimizing the management of feed intolerance. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1320667 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Medicine, 2008

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1987.