Service delivery of complex interventions for refractory breathlessness

Purpose of review: The review considers the evidence for different service models existing for helping people manage the chronic, irreversible breathlessness that accompanies advanced disease. Recent findings: Many of the service models that are delivering care have not yet published their results in the scientific literature because these ideas, and the methods to evaluate them, are relatively new. There are three randomized controlled trials published which demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach and one which suggests that more episodes of some intervention components are not necessarily better. Summary: Breathlessness severity gives a better guide to a patient's prognosis than physiological measures in many diseases and the general population. Randomized controlled trial evidence confirms that a complex intervention for breathlessness can improve quality of life, reduce symptom impact, and support carers. Some preliminary data suggest prognosis improvement in some people. Integrated care is needed for both rapidly progressive disease, where death is inevitable, and chronic illness, when health improvement is possible.
Source: Current Opinion in Supportive and Palliative Care - Category: Palliative Care Tags: RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS: Edited by David C. Currow and Miriam J. Johnson Source Type: research