Department of Health Promotion, Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo Metropolitan University, Pilestredet 32, 0166, Oslo, Norway.
School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.
BMC Geriatr. 2023 Aug 9;23(1):481. doi: 10.1186/s12877-023-04198-1.
Evaluate for differences in occurrence, severity, and distress ratings for 32 symptoms between younger older adults (YOA, < 70 years) and older adults (OA, ≥ 70 years) at initiation of chemotherapy.
Patients (n = 125) were recruited prior to the initiation of chemotherapy and completed the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale. Differences in occurrence, severity, and distress ratings were evaluated using Independent sample t-tests and Chi-square or Fisher's exact tests.
On average, the older patients reported ten concurrent symptoms that equates with a moderate symptom burden. Symptoms with the highest occurrence rates were not always the most severe and/or the most distressing. Few age-related differences were found in patients' symptom experiences. When age-related differences were identified, OA reported lower occurrence, severity, and distress ratings. Nine of the ten symptoms with highest occurrence rates were common for both age groups. For severity and distress, only half of the symptoms were common. In terms of severity and distress, all of the top ten ranked symptoms were in the moderate to severe range.
Both YOA and OA reported a moderate symptom burden and severity and distress scores in the moderate to severe range. The symptoms with the highest occurrence rates were not always the most severe/or the most distressing. Our findings suggest that different dimensions of the symptom experience (i.e., occurrence, severity, and distress) warrant evaluation in older oncology patients.
评估在化疗开始时，年轻老年人（YOA，<70 岁）和老年人（OA，≥70 岁）之间 32 种症状的发生、严重程度和困扰评分是否存在差异。
在化疗开始前，招募了 125 名患者，并完成了纪念症状评估量表。使用独立样本 t 检验和卡方或 Fisher 精确检验评估发生率、严重程度和困扰评分的差异。
平均而言，老年患者报告了十种同时存在的症状，这相当于中度症状负担。发生率最高的症状并不总是最严重和/或最困扰的。患者的症状体验中很少发现与年龄相关的差异。当发现与年龄相关的差异时，OA 报告的发生率、严重程度和困扰评分较低。十种发生率最高的症状中有九种在两个年龄组中都很常见。在严重程度和困扰方面，只有一半的症状是常见的。在严重程度和困扰方面，排名前十的所有症状都处于中度到重度范围。
YOA 和 OA 都报告了中度症状负担和中度到重度的严重程度和困扰评分。发生率最高的症状并不总是最严重/或最困扰的。我们的研究结果表明，不同维度的症状体验（即发生率、严重程度和困扰）需要在老年肿瘤患者中进行评估。
