ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Pruritus affects the quality of life (QoL) in the patients. However, little is known of the impacts of itching on the QoL in the literature. OBJECTIVE: In this study, a questionnaire eliciting specific responses about pruritus was used to determine the effect of itching and its severity on QoL in chronic pruritic patients. METHODS: One hundred ten adult patients with chronic pruritus were surveyed. Once itch severity had been self-reported by patients, together with Skindex-29, they have been given the 18-item Pruritus-related Life Quality Index (PLQI) questionnaire, which was used to generated the new index. RESULTS: Significant correlations have been found between the pruritus severity score of participants and their total Skindex-29 (p<0.001) with its function, emotion and symptom subscale scores (p<0.001 for each). Also, significant correlations were evident between total PLQI (p<0.001) and its psychosocial negativities, difficulties in everyday activities and social live subscale scores (p<0.001 for each). In particular, the emotion subscale of Skindex-29 (p=0.02) and psychosocial negativity subscale of PLQI (p=0.02) were significantly high in psychopathologic patients. A highly positive statistical correlation between Skindex-29 and PLQI scales was evident (r=0.845, p<0.001). For reliability, Cronbach's coefficient a coefficients were 0.931 for the Skindex-29 scale and 0.918 for the PLQI scale. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate that chronic pruritus appreciably reduces the QoL. PLQI could be used in the development of new questionnaires for determining the QoL of patients with chronic itch.
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Pruritus , Quality of Life , Weights and Measures , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Thyroid hormone dysfunction could affect outcome and increase mortality in critical illness. Therefore, in a prospective, observational study we analyzed and compared the prognostic accuracy of free tri-iodothyronine [fT3], free thyroxine [fT4], thyroid-stimulating hormone [TSH], along with the APACHE II and SOFA scoring systems in predicting intensive care unit [ICU] mortality in critically ill patients. Physiology scores were calculated for the first 24 hours after ICU admission in 206 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. APACHE II and SOFA scores were employed to determine the initial severity of illness. Thyroid hormones were measured within the first 24 hours. Logistic regression models were created for APACHE II scores, SOFA scores, and thyroid hormone levels. The models predicted high- and low-risk subgroups. Models that showed a good fit were stratified by Kaplan-Meier survival curves. There were 98 [47.6%] survivors and 108 [52.4%] non-survivors. The survivors had a lower APACHE II score [11.50 vs 15.82, P<0.0005], a lower SOFA score [6.06 vs 9.42, P<0.0005], a younger age [57 vs 70 years, P=0.008], a shorter ICU stay [13 vs 16 days, P=0.012], and a higher fT3 level [2.18 vs 1.72 pg/mL, P=0.002] than non-survivors. ICU survival was most closely predicted by a model that included age and fT3 and a model that included APACHE II and APACHE II*sex. In critically ill patients, serum fT3 concentrations markedly decreased after ICU admission among non-survivors. According to our findings, fT3 levels might have additive discriminatory power to age, SOFA and APACHE II scores in predicting short-term mortality in ARDS patients admitted to ICU