ArticleSchmerz (Berlin, Germany)2026
[Analgesics and supportive care in the last month of life : Retrospective analysis of outpatient prescriptions using BARMER data from patients with oncological diseases (2016-2021)].
Article in Schmerz (Berlin, Germany), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn Germany, various forms of outpatient palliative care (PC) for oncological patients have been established for years. However, no data is available on how prescription rates of analgesics and supportive care vary depending on the specific form of outpatient PC.
methodsThis retrospective cohort study analyzed data from 158,035 deceased statutory health insurance patients with advanced cancer between 2016 and 2021. Three groups were analyzed: patients without outpatient PC, with general outpatient PC or particularly qualified and coordinated PC (AAPV/BQKPmV), and with specialized outpatient PC (SAPV). The study focused on the prescription rates of various medication groups according to ATC codes (nonopioid and opioid analgesics, antineuropathic medication, antiemetics, systemic steroids, stool-regulating measures) and their combinations in the last month of life.
resultsSAPV patients showed the highest prescription rates, e.g., strong opioids (71.8%), followed by AAPV/BQKPmV (47.2%) and patients without PC (22.5%). The prescription rates for all supportive medications showed similar patterns. An inverse pattern was observed for weak opioids: SAPV (5.8%), AAPV/BQKPmV (8.9%), and no PC (9.1%). The guideline-adherent combination of strong opioid analgesics and laxatives was implemented in less than half of the cases in SAPV (44.2%) and even less frequently in AAPV/BQKPmV (32.4%).
conclusionThis study provides comprehensive insights into medication prescription practices in outpatient PC in the last month of life, for the first time. The high prescription rates in SAPV reflects more intensive medication treatment of patients with possibly more complex symptoms in this specialized form of PC.
Indexed as
Identifiers
42752898What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.