Peer support in adolescents and young adults with chronic or rare conditions in northern America and Europe: Targeted literature review.

PROBLEM: Adolescents and young adults with chronic or rare conditions face unique risks to their physical, social and emotional development. Research suggests that peer support improves their quality of life and reduces social isolation. However, there is a paucity of current information considering multiple intervention formats. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: A targeted literature review was conducted to identify peer support interventions and assess their feasibility, acceptability and efficacy for this population. Searches were conducted in MEDLINE, Embase and American Psychological Association PsycINFO for records reporting peer support interventions in young adults with chronic or rare conditions. Data were extracted from relevant publications and qualitatively evaluated. SAMPLE: Thirty studies were included, which assessed the use of peer support for young adults (aged 13-30 years) with chronic or rare conditions in Europe or North America. RESULTS: Peer support interventions had positive effects on social positivity, psychosocial development and medical outcomes, though significance was not always demonstrated. CONCLUSIONS: Peer support can enhance care for young adults with chronic or rare conditions. Current literature suggests that once-weekly virtual interventions are the most feasible and acceptable for patients, leading to multifaceted improvements in their well-being. IMPLICATIONS: This study is one of the first to discuss in-person, virtual and hybrid peer-based interventions for young adults with chronic and rare conditions. While all formats improved social, psychological and medical outcomes, virtual formats may be most accessible to participants. Interventions should be made available to this population, and guidelines for optimal implementation of peer support are needed.

Does Serum Urate Change as Parkinson's Disease Progresses?

Higher serum urate concentration is associated with decreased risk of Parkinson's disease (PD) as well as slower disease progression, but its relationship with severity of PD remains unclear. This study investigated whether changes in serum urate concentration over 5 years were associated with disease progression assessed by MDS-UPDRS Part III score, Hoehn and Yahr stage, or DaTscan imaging. Average serum urate concentration was stable over time and change in serum urate concentration did not correlate with worsening of measures of PD progression. These results suggest that serum urate concentration is not a monitoring biomarker of PD progression in early stages.