ArticleInternational journal of clinical pharmacy2015
Medication use during end-of-life care in a palliative care centre.
Article in International journal of clinical pharmacy, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers.
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Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed.
- The Relationship of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder to End-of-life Care Received by Dying Veterans: a Secondary Data Analysis.Journal of general internal medicine · 2020Trial
- Hypoalbuminaemia and decreased midazolam clearance in terminally ill adult patients, an inflammatory effect?British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2017Trial
- [Chronic opioid intoxication may lead to life-threatening misdiagnoses in palliative care patients].Schmerz (Berlin, Germany) · 2026Article
- Symptom prevalence and pharmacological management of late-stage Parkinson's disease (LSPD): a cross-sectional, multinational survey.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2026Article
- Essential medications in palliative care: an updated survey of Australian and New Zealand medical practitioners practising palliative care.Internal medicine journal · 2026Article
- Impact of Drug-to-Drug Interactions on Patients With Advanced Cancer in Palliative Care Settings.Cureus · 2026Article
- Storage stability of hospital-prepared mianserin suppositories: evaluation of residual active ingredient content and bacteriological contamination under different storage conditions.Journal of pharmaceutical health care and sciences · 2026Article
- Acceptability of supporting lay-carer administration of anticipatory subcutaneous medications at home: a qualitative study using the theoretical framework of acceptability.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- Relationship Between Opioid Use, Depression, and Quality of Life Among Persons With HIV at End of Life.Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2025Article
- Case Series of Akathisia in Palliative Medicine: Patient Perspective and Efficacy of Procyclidine in Diagnosis and Management.The American journal of hospice & palliative care · 2025Article
- Use of Potentially Inappropriate Medications Identified by STOPPFrail Among Danish Care Home Residents: A Nationwide Drug Utilisation Study.Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology · 2025Article
- Prescription of essential medication during the final hospitalization of patients with heart failure or cancer.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- Current trends in antimicrobial use and the role of antimicrobial stewardship in palliative oncology: a narrative review.BMC palliative care · 2025Review
- [Pain management in German specialized outpatient palliative care : A cross-sectional study to present the current pain management of palliative patients in the home environment].Schmerz (Berlin, Germany) · 2024Article
- Pharmacological Prescription at the End of Life: Quality Assessment in the Transition of Care to a Community Palliative Care Support Team.Pharmaceutics · 2024Article
- Pain management in German hospices: a cross-sectional study.BMC palliative care · 2024Article
- Lidocaine transdermal patches reduced pain intensity in neuropathic cancer patients already receiving opioid treatment.BMC palliative care · 2023Article
- Intention of healthcare providers to use video-communication in terminal care: a cross-sectional study.BMC palliative care · 2022Article
- End-of-Life and Palliative Care in a Critical Care Setting: The Crucial Role of the Critical Care Pharmacist.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Prescription trends at the end of life in a palliative care unit: observational study.BMC palliative care · 2022Observational
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn end-of-life care, symptoms of discomfort are mainly managed by drug therapy, the guidelines for which are mainly based on expert opinions. A few papers have inventoried drug prescriptions in palliative care settings, but none has reported the frequency of use in combination with doses and route of administration.
objectiveTo describe doses and routes of administration of the most frequently used drugs at admission and at day of death. Setting Palliative care centre in the Netherlands.
methodIn this retrospective cohort study, prescription data of deceased patients were extracted from the electronic medical records.
main outcome measureDoses, frequency and route of administration of prescribed drugs
resultsAll regular medication prescriptions of 208 patients, 89% of whom had advanced cancer, were reviewed. The three most prescribed drugs were morphine, midazolam and haloperidol, to 21, 11 and 23% of patients at admission, respectively. At the day of death these percentages had increased to 87, 58 and 50%, respectively. Doses of these three drugs at the day of death were statistically significantly higher than at admission. The oral route of administration was used in 89% of patients at admission versus subcutaneous in 94% at the day of death.
conclusionsNearing the end of life, patients in this palliative care centre receive discomfort-relieving drugs mainly via the subcutaneous route. However, most of these drugs are unlicensed for this specific application and guidelines are based on low level of evidence. Thus, there is every reason for more clinical research on drug use in palliative care.
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