European journal of cardiovascular nursing最新文献

Retrospective data collection methods provide a practical and cost-effective alternative to traditional longitudinal studies, particularly when time and resource constraints hinder long-term follow-up. While conventional retrospective questionnaires are widely used, their susceptibility to recall errors often compromises data reliability and accuracy. The Life History Calendar (LHC) has emerged as a solution to these limitations by incorporating visual prompts and contextual cues to enhance recall and improve data quality. This article offers a comprehensive overview of the LHC approach, highlighting its flexible design and diverse administration methods. Additionally, key considerations for the effective management, analysis and visualisation of LHC data are discussed.

Many nurses and allied professionals (NAPs) lack the skills, knowledge and confidence to engage in conducting and implementing research. This statement describes the importance of NAPs' involvement in clinical research within the context of cardiovascular care. The existing gaps, barriers and enablers to NAPs involvement in research as a potential response to workforce issues in these professions as well as to contribute to excellence in patient care delivery and associated outcomes are identified. Specifically, career development pathways for NAPs are discussed. Finally, potential future directions for NAP research in clinical practice are provided.

Aims: Developing an integrated care pathway for atrial fibrillation (AF) patients is of pivotal importance, given the different treatment strategies. Moreover, knowledge about the condition is an important factor in engaging patients in their care. Patient education formed the core of the integrated AF-EduCare/AF-EduApp approach. The main aim of this manuscript is to report the impact of this approach on AF and risk factor (RF)-related knowledge and self-care awareness.

Methods and results: Atrial fibrillation patients (n = 1232) were randomized to standard care (SC) or three educational interventions: in-person, online, or app-based education. Patients in the intervention groups received targeted education based on their responses to the Jessa Atrial fibrillation Knowledge Questionnaire (JAKQ) and a Self-Care Questionnaire (SCQ) presented at different time points. Patients who received educational follow-up reached a significantly higher knowledge score (in-person: 86.5 ± 13.2%; online: 82.5 ± 19.3%; app: 80.1 ± 15.0%) than the SC group (65.3 ± 16.6%) after 12/18 months (P < 0.001). The knowledge rapidly improved with the first sessions (i.e. 3 months) and remained sustained in all education groups. Patients with RF at baseline showed a slight but significant increase in awareness about their RF through education [e.g. no knowledge of last measured systolic blood pressure compared between education vs. SC: odds ratio of 0.45 (P = 0.012)], a change that was not seen in SC patients. Nevertheless, patients keep under-estimating the presence of their own RFs compared with objective documentation in their medical record (e.g. hypertension).

Conclusion: The JAKQ and SCQ are good instruments to provide targeted education to AF patients in daily clinical care. Knowledge level increases clinically significantly, but the impact on awareness about personal risk factors remains unsatisfactory.

Registration: ClinicalTrials/gov: NCT03707873NCT03788044.

Aims: To construct a symptom network of chronic heart failure patients in the vulnerable period and identify core symptoms and bridge symptoms between different symptom clusters.

Methods and results: A convenience sampling method was used to select 402 patients with chronic heart failure within 3 months after discharge from the cardiology departments of two tertiary-level A hospitals in Zhenjiang City, and symptom-related entries of the Minnesota living with heart failure questionnaire (MLHFQ) were used to conduct the survey. Symptom networks were constructed using the R language. The constructed symptom network was structurally stable, and the correlation stability coefficient was 0.595. In the network, 'depression' (MLHFQ9), 'dyspnoea on exertion' (MLHFQ3), and 'worry' (MLHFQ7) are the core symptoms. 'Cognitive problems' (MLHFQ8), 'sleep difficulties' (MLHFQ4), and 'fatigue' (MLHFQ6) are bridge symptoms connecting the emotional-cognitive and somatic symptom clusters. In the network comparison test, there were no significant differences in symptom networks between patients of different genders and places of residence.

Conclusion: 'Depression' and 'increased need to rest' are the core and most severe symptoms, respectively, in the vulnerable phase of chronic heart failure, and 'cognitive problems' is the most important bridge symptom. Clinical caregivers can build a precise intervention programme based on the core and bridge symptoms and focus on the emotional and cognitive symptom clusters, in order to improve the efficacy of symptom management during the vulnerable period in patients with chronic heart failure.

Thorough consideration of user experiences and the weighing of advantages and disadvantages are essential when implementing new technology in clinical practice. This article describes a primary care nurse's experience using two technologies to monitor lung congestion in six patient cases: a remote dielectric sensing device for non-invasive lung fluid measurement and a portable handheld ultrasound device. Both can support decision-making when assessing lung congestion in heart failure patients. However, technical difficulties and interpretational complexities are inherent in their use. Balancing these advantages and disadvantages and finding effective strategies to address challenges is crucial for successful clinical implementation.