Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32751099›Full record

ArticleCancers2020

Episodic Breathlessness with and without Background Dyspnea in Advanced Cancer Patients Admitted to an Acute Supportive Care Unit.

Sebastiano Mercadante, Claudio Adile, Patrizia Ferrera, Giuseppe Bonanno, Vincenzo Restivo, Alessandra Casuccio

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cancers, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Sebastiano MercadanteMain Regional Center for Pain Relief and Palliative/Supportive Care, La Maddalena Cancer Center, 90145 Palermo, Italy.
Claudio AdileMain Regional Center for Pain Relief and Palliative/Supportive Care, La Maddalena Cancer Center, 90145 Palermo, Italy.
Patrizia FerreraMain Regional Center for Pain Relief and Palliative/Supportive Care, La Maddalena Cancer Center, 90145 Palermo, Italy.
Giuseppe BonannoMain Regional Center for Pain Relief and Palliative/Supportive Care, La Maddalena Cancer Center, 90145 Palermo, Italy.
Vincenzo RestivoDepartment of Health Promotion Sciences, Maternal and Infant Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (PROMISE), University of Palermo, 90130 Palermo, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-5406-884X
Alessandra CasuccioDepartment of Health Promotion Sciences, Maternal and Infant Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties (PROMISE), University of Palermo, 90130 Palermo, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-5676-9535
La Maddalena · ITUniversity of Palermo · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

aimTo characterize episodic breathlessness (EB) in patients with advanced cancer, and to determine factors influencing its clinical appearance.

methodsA consecutive sample of advanced cancer patients admitted to an acute palliative care unit was surveyed. Continuous dyspnea and EB were measured by a numerical scale. The use of drugs used for continuous dyspnea and EB was recorded. Patients were asked about the characteristics of EB (frequency, intensity, duration and triggers). The Multidimensional dyspnea profile (MDP), the Brief dyspnea inventory (BDI), the Athens sleep scale (AIS) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were also administered.

resultsFrom 439 advanced cancer patients surveyed, 34 and 27 patients had EB, without and with background dyspnea, respectively. The mean intensity and the number of episodes were higher in patients with background dyspnea ( DISCUSSION: EB may occur in patients with and without continuous dyspnea, and is often induced by physical and psychological factors. EB intensity is higher in patients with continuous dyspnea. The duration was often so short that the use of drugs, as needed, may be too late, unless administered pre-emptively when the trigger was predictable.

Indexed as

advanced cancerdyspneaepisodic breathlessnessopioidspalliative care

Identifiers

PMID32751099
PMCPMC7464712
OpenAlexW3046041499

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.