Chan Carmen W H, Richardson Alison, Richardson Janet
Nethersole School of Nursing, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Esther Lee Building, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2005 Dec;9(4):325-33. doi: 10.1016/j.ejon.2005.02.003. Epub 2005 Nov 18.
The purpose of this small-scale study was to assess the existence of a symptom cluster involving breathlessness, fatigue and anxiety in patients with advanced lung cancer undergoing palliative radiation. A convenience sample of 27 patients were asked to complete a set of 100mm horizontal visual analogue scales (VAS) measuring the intensity of anxiety, breathlessness and fatigue at 3 points in time: 1 day prior to palliative radiotherapy (RT) (baseline, T0), and at week 3 (T1) and week 6 (T2) after the commencement of the RT. The prevalence of the 3 symptoms ranged from 59% to 96%. At baseline the median intensity of symptoms was mild, becoming progressively worse at T1 and T2. The correlations between the 3 symptoms were moderately strong at T1 and T2 (r=0.49-0.75). The proposed symptom cluster had high internal consistency across T0-T2. These data support the notion that the symptoms--breathlessness, fatigue, and anxiety--may be viewed as a symptom cluster. The high prevalence and moderate intensity of the symptom cluster demonstrates a need for an intervention to manage these symptoms simultaneously.
这项小规模研究的目的是评估接受姑息性放疗的晚期肺癌患者中是否存在由呼吸急促、疲劳和焦虑组成的症状群。选取了27名患者的便利样本，要求他们在三个时间点完成一套100毫米水平视觉模拟量表（VAS），以测量焦虑、呼吸急促和疲劳的强度：姑息性放疗（RT）前1天（基线，T0），以及RT开始后的第3周（T1）和第6周（T2）。这三种症状的患病率在59%至96%之间。在基线时，症状的中位强度为轻度，在T1和T2时逐渐加重。在T1和T2时，这三种症状之间的相关性中等强度（r = 0.49 - 0.75）。所提出的症状群在T0 - T2期间具有较高的内部一致性。这些数据支持以下观点，即呼吸急促、疲劳和焦虑这些症状可被视为一个症状群。症状群的高患病率和中等强度表明需要进行干预以同时管理这些症状。
