Recall bias of the symptoms of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy

Recalling the severity of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy - a study using Pregnancy-Unique Quantification of Emesis Questionnaire

The accuracy of the recall of the severity of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) with Pregnancy-Unique Quantification of Emesis (PUQE) questionnaire has been questioned. We aimed to compare PUQE scores of women recalling the worst episode of NVP of their current pregnancy in different gestational weeks (gwks). Total of 2343 pregnant women (gwks 7-40) were recruited. Four groups were formed according to the gwks at reply: ≤16 gwks (n = 554), ≤20 gwks (n = 1209), >20 gwks (n = 1134) and ≥24 gwks (n = 495). PUQE scores were similar between the groups. Consequently, consistency of PUQE scores across the groups endorses the useability of the PUQE questionnaire in retrospective assessment of the overall severity of NVP in different gwks, regardless of passing of the peak NVP symptoms.Impact statementWhat is already known on this subject? Retrospective evaluation of the severity of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) has been argued to be disposed to recall bias. Structured Pregnancy-Unique Quantification of Emesis (PUQE) questionnaire is a validated tool for assessing the severity of NVP.What do the results of this study add? When the women recalled the most severe NVP symptoms of their current pregnancy, no differences in the PUQE scores were found despite different gestational weeks at reply. Of distinct PUQE questions, women answering in early pregnancy reported longer duration of nausea than women answering in late pregnancy, but other questions were rated similarly.What the implications are of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Our aim was to compare the PUQE scores between the women who filled in the PUQE questionnaire in early or in late pregnancy, instructed to recall their worst symptoms in their current pregnancy. As there were no differences between the groups in total PUQE scores, our results support the application of PUQE questionnaire to assess the severity of NVP during pregnancy not only concurrent to the peak symptoms but also retrospectively.

Recall Bias Affects Pain Assessment in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Pilot Study

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to evaluate the recall bias of symptoms evaluation in knee osteoarthritis (OA).

DESIGN

In this multicentric pilot study, 50 patients with knee OA used a mobile App (Ecological Momentary Assessment [EMA]) to collect pain and function on two 0 to 10 numerical rating scales (NRS) 2 times a day for 2 months. At the 1-month and at the 2-month follow-up visits, patients retrospectively evaluated the mean level of pain/function of the last month. Recall bias was computed as the difference between the mean level of pain/function reported using the App and the level reported with the retrospective assessment. The correlation between the recall bias and patients' characteristics, as well as pain/function trajectories, was analyzed.

RESULTS

A statistically significant recall bias was documented with higher pain reported at 1-month with the retrospective assessment (P < 0.001). These results were confirmed also at the 2-month follow-up (P = 0.002). For function, no significant recall bias was documented. During the first and second months, 47 and 31 patients showed pain peaks, respectively. The number of pain peaks during the first month was correlated with the magnitude of the recall bias (P = 0.02).

CONCLUSIONS

The recall bias influences the retrospective self-assessment of pain at the follow-up visits and the presence of pain peaks, a common event in the patients with OA, increases the magnitude of recall bias. The EMA performed with a mobile App is a useful tool to limit the influence of recall bias in the clinical and research setting evaluation of knee OA.

Nutritional consequences and management of hyperemesis gravidarum: a narrative review

Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is a condition at the extreme end of the pregnancy sickness spectrum, estimated to affect 1-2 % of pregnant women. This narrative review provides an overview of the current literature concerning the nutritional implications and management of HG. HG can persist throughout pregnancy, causing malnutrition, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and unintended weight loss, requiring hospital admission in most cases. In addition to its negative effect on maternal, physical and psychological wellbeing, HG can negatively impact fetal growth and may have adverse consequences on the health of the offspring. HG care and research have been hampered in the past due to stigma, inconsistent diagnostic criteria, mismanagement and lack of investment. Little is known about the nutritional intake of women with HG and whether poor intake at critical stages of pregnancy is associated with perinatal outcomes. Effective treatment requires a combination of medical interventions, lifestyle changes, dietary changes, supportive care and patient education. There is, however, limited evidence-based research on the effectiveness of dietary approaches. Enteral tube feeding and parenteral nutrition are generally reserved for the most intractable cases, where other treatment modalities have failed. Wernicke encephalopathy is a rare but very serious and avoidable consequence of unmanaged HG. A recent priority-setting exercise involving patients, clinicians and researchers highlighted the importance of nutrition research to all. Future research should focus on these priorities to better understand the nutritional implications of HG. Ultimately improved recognition and management of malnutrition in HG is required to prevent complications and optimise nutritional care.

The onset of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy: a prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND

Nausea and vomiting are experienced by most women during pregnancy. The onset is usually related to Last Menstrual Period (LMP) the date of which is often unreliable. This study describes the time to onset of nausea and vomiting symptoms from date of ovulation and compares this to date of last menstrual period METHODS: Prospective cohort of women seeking to become pregnant, recruited from 12 May 2014 to 25 November 2016, in the United Kingdom. Daily diaries of nausea and vomiting were kept by 256 women who were trying to conceive. The main outcome measure is the number of days from last menstrual period (LMP) or luteinising hormone surge until onset of nausea or vomiting.

RESULTS

Almost all women (88%) had Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin rise within 8 to 10 days of ovulation; the equivalent interval from LMP was 20 to 30 days. Many (67%) women experience symptoms within 11 to 20 days of ovulation.

CONCLUSIONS

Onset of nausea and vomiting occurs earlier than previously reported and there is a narrow window for onset of symptoms. This indicates that its etiology is associated with a specific developmental stage at the foetal-maternal interface.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

NCT01577147 . Date of registration 13 April 2012.

How to live with a meningioma: experiences, symptoms, and challenges reported by patients

Background

We aimed to explore gaps in the care of meningioma patients that could improve quality of care by better understanding symptoms experienced by patients at various stages of treatment, and afterwards.

Methods

A novel 19-item self-administered questionnaire was provided for patients with meningiomas to complete by the American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA) over a 3-month period.

Results

A total of 1852 unique respondents were included. Nearly one-third of all respondents felt they received insufficient information about meningiomas at initial diagnosis (N = 607, 32.9%) and 28.8% (N = 530) believed they received insufficient information about treatment options. In fact, 34.5% of respondents received the majority of their information from the internet and nonhealthcare professionals. The most common concerns after initial diagnosis were risks associated with surgery and/or treatment (36.5%) followed by how the tumor would impact daily life (25%) and the risk of tumor recurrence (12.4%). Respondents indicated that a list of resources available for patients with meningiomas (N = 597, 32.3%) would have been most beneficial in regards to their disease experience after their initial diagnosis. Moreover, we found that a substantial proportion of patients continued to report symptoms long after treatment, with fatigue being the most common compared to before treatment (38.2% vs. 57.7%, χ ² = 128, P < .001).

Conclusions

Patients with meningiomas exhibit symptoms that continue well after treatment with fatigue and cognitive impairments as the most bothersome. Moreover, patients report key communication gaps that can be addressed to improve their disease experience and care.

Symptom severity in autism spectrum disorder is related to the frequency and severity of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy: a retrospective case-control study

Background

Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy (NVP) is thought to be caused by changes in maternal hormones during pregnancy. Differences in hormone exposure during prenatal life have been implicated in the causal pathways for some cases of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, no study has investigated whether the presence and severity of NVP may be related to symptom severity in offspring with ASD.

Methods

A large sample of children with ASD (227 males and 60 females, aged 2 to 18 years) received a clinical assessment, during which parents completed questionnaires regarding their child’s social (Social Responsiveness Scale, SRS) and communication (Children’s Communication Checklist–2nd edition, CCC-2) symptoms. Parents also reported on a 5-point scale the frequency and severity of NVPs during the pregnancy of the child being assessed: (1) no NVP during the pregnancy, (2) occasional nausea, but no vomiting, (3) daily nausea, but no vomiting, (4) occasional vomiting, with or without nausea, and (5) daily nausea and vomiting.

Results

Impairments in social responsiveness in offspring, as indexed by SRS total score, significantly increased as a function of the frequency and severity of their mothers’ NVP, as did the level of language difficulties as indexed by the Global Communication Composite of the CCC-2.

Conclusions

The strong, positive association between increasing frequency and severity of NVP and ASD severity in offspring provides further evidence that exposure to an atypical hormonal environment during prenatal life may affect neurodevelopment and contribute to the ASD phenotype. Given that the measure of NVP symptoms in the current study was based on retrospective recall, replication of this finding is required before strong conclusions can be drawn.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s13229-018-0223-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy - association with pelvic girdle pain during pregnancy and 4-6 months post-partum

Background

To better understand previous associations reported regarding nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (NVP) and pelvic girdle pain (PGP), an investigation into timing of symptom onset for NVP and PGP in pregnancy, as well as the association of NVP with PGP 4-6 months post-partum was performed. We hypothesised that women with NVP symptoms would be most susceptible to experiencing persistence of PGP post-partum.

Methods

Fifty two thousand six hundred seventy-eight pregnancies from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study were analysed regarding nausea, vomiting, pelvic girdle pain, and health outcome data collected from questionnaires answered between gestation weeks 15, 20, 30, and 6 months post-partum. Logistic regression was used.

Results

Women experiencing NVP and PGP together (6.9%) were heaviest in the sample, youngest at menarche and had highest proportion with education ≤12 years. The primiparous women in this group had the lowest timespan from menarche to pregnancy. Women with nausea alone (NP) and NVP had higher odds of PGP 4-6 months post-partum (adjusted odds ratio, aOR = 2.14, 95% CI 1.70–2.71, and aOR = 2.83, 95% CI 2.25–3.57, respectively), compared to symptom-free women. NP/NVP symptoms appeared early in the first trimester, while PGP symptoms appeared later in pregnancy. Women with longer durations of nausea and/or vomiting had a higher proportion of PGP compared to shorter duration women.

Conclusions

Women with NP and NVP had increased odds of PGP 4-6 months post-partum, and women with a long duration of nausea and/or vomiting had a higher proportion of PGP than women with shorter duration, both during pregnancy and 4-6 months post-partum. This finding suggests a synergistic relationship between NP/NVP and PGP.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12884-018-1764-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Association between vomiting in the first trimester and preterm birth: a retrospective birth cohort study in Wuhan, China

OBJECTIVE

Although vomiting in the first trimester has been reported to be associated with preterm birth (PTB), findings supporting this association remain inconsistent. Our aim was to assess the association between vomiting and PTB, as well as evaluate if the association is modified by pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI).

DESIGN

A retrospective cohort study.

SETTING

Wuhan, a central city of China.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 317 463 pregnant women who had a live, singleton newborn from 1 January 2010 to 23 May 2016 were enrolled in our study.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

PTB was defined as gestational age <37 gestational weeks. Gestational age was calculated using reports from mothers based on the first day of their last menstrual period. An ultrasound was routinely used to determine gestational age before 12 gestational weeks.

RESULTS

Of the 317 463 pregnant women, 29.88% (94 857) experienced vomiting in the first trimester and 5.00% (15 889) experienced a PTB. Vomiting in the first trimester increased the risk for PTB and the multivariable adjusted OR was 1.05 (95% CI 1.02 to 1.09). In the stratified analyses, the association of vomiting in the first trimester was significant among underweight women (adjusted OR=1.08, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.17) and normal pre-pregnancy BMI women (adjusted OR=1.06, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.11), but not in overweight women (adjusted OR=1.01, 95% CI 0.90 to 1.14) and obese women (adjusted OR=0.93, 95% CI 0.73 to 1.19).

CONCLUSIONS

Our study indicates that vomiting in the first trimester was associated with PTB. Additionally, women with underweight and normal pre-pregnancy BMI who experienced vomiting are more likely to have a PTB.

The burden of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy: severe impacts on quality of life, daily life functioning and willingness to become pregnant again - results from a cross-sectional study

Background

Though nausea and vomiting is very common during pregnancy, no studies have investigated the impact of this condition on the women’s daily lives in a Scandinavian population. The aim of this study was to describe the burden of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy (NVP) on global quality of life, daily life functioning and willingness to become pregnant again according to the severity of NVP symptoms.

Methods

This study is a cross-sectional population-based study conducted in Norway. Pregnant women and mothers with children <1 year of age with current or prior NVP were eligible to participate. Data were collected through an anonymous on-line questionnaire accessible from November 10^th, 2014 to January 31^st, 2015. Severity of NVP was measured using the 24-h Pregnancy Unique Quantification of Emesis Scale (PUQE). Associations between severity of NVP, daily life functioning and willingness to become pregnant again were tested using chi-square tests. Associations with global quality of life measured in terms of the Quality of Life Scale (QOLS) were estimated using generalized linear models and reported as unstandardized regression coefficients (β) with 95% confidence intervals (CI).

Results

712 women with NVP were included in the study. NVP was significantly associated with several characteristics, including daily life functioning, quality of life and willingness to become pregnant again. The negative impact was greater the more severe the symptoms were, although considerable adverse effects were also seen among women with mild and moderate NVP symptoms. Over one fourth of the women with severe NVP considered terminating the pregnancy due to NVP, and three in four considered not to get pregnant again. Severity of NVP remained significantly associated with reduced global quality of life when adjusting for maternal characteristics and illnesses with β (95% CI) = −10.9 (−16.9, −4.9) for severe versus mild NVP.

Conclusions

NVP as measured by PUQE had a major impact on various aspects of the women’s lives, including global quality of life and willingness to become pregnant again.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12884-017-1249-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Pregnancy complications and birth outcomes among women experiencing nausea only or nausea and vomiting during pregnancy in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study

Background

To compare pregnancy complications and birth outcomes for women experiencing nausea and vomiting in pregnancy, or nausea only, with symptom-free women.

Methods

Pregnancies from the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (n = 51 675), a population-based prospective cohort study, were examined. Data on nausea and/or vomiting during gestation and birth outcomes were collected from three questionnaires answered between gestation weeks 15 and 30, and linked with data from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway. Chi-squared tests, one way analysis of variance, multiple linear and logistic regression analyses were used.

Results

Women with nausea and vomiting (NVP) totalled 17 070 (33 %), while 20 371 (39 %) experienced nausea only (NP), and 14 234 (28 %) were symptom-free (SF). When compared to SF women, NVP and NP women had significantly increased odds for pelvic girdle pain (adjusted odds ratio, aOR, 2.26, 95 % confidence interval, 95 % CI, 2.09–2.43, and aOR 1.90, 95 % CI, 1.76–2.05, respectively) and proteinuria (aOR 1.50, 95 % CI 1.38–1.63, and 1.20, 95 % CI 1.10–1.31, respectively). Women with NVP also had significantly increased odds for high blood pressure (aOR 1.40, 95 % CI 1.17–1.67) and preeclampsia (aOR 1.13, 95 % CI 1.01–1.27). Conversely, the NVP and NP groups had significantly reduced odds for unfavourable birth outcomes such as low birth weight infants (aOR 0.72, 95 % CI 0.60–0.88, and aOR 0.73, 95 % CI 0.60–0.88, respectively) and small for gestational age infants (aOR 0.78, 95 % CI 0.73–0.84, and aOR 0.87, 95 % CI 0.81–0.93, respectively).

Conclusions

We found that women with NVP and NP are more likely to develop pregnancy complications, yet they display mostly favourable delivery and birth outcomes.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12884-015-0580-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Does switching from oral to subcutaneous administration of methotrexate influence on patient reported gastro-intestinal adverse effects?

INTRODUCTION

When treating patients with methotrexate (MTX) the most frequently reported adverse effects (AE) are gastrointestinal (GI) with nausea being reported by 10-20%. If intolerable AE of oral MTX persist, switching from oral to subcutaneous (SC) or intramuscular (IM) administration is common. However, this approach is largely empirical and the evidence is inconsistent. To our knowledge, this will be the first study to estimate the change in GI AE of switching from oral to SC MTX.

METHODS

A retrospective postal survey was sent to patients who had changed from oral MTX to SC MTX. GI AE was rated by visual analogue scale (VAS) regarding frequency and intensity of nausea, frequency of vomiting and frequency of discomfort. All participants gave informed consent. No further ethical clearance was necessary according to national law.

RESULTS

Of the sample 39/57 (68.4%) responded. Significant reductions in VAS were found in three of four primary outcome measures for GI AE. Only frequency of vomiting was not significantly reduced.

CONCLUSION

Our findings support the common practice of switching from oral to SC MTX to alleviate GI AE, however, additional research is needed in order to clarify this rarely studied subject.

Adverse pregnancy outcomes in women with nausea and vomiting of pregnancy

OBJECTIVE

To examine the influence of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) on pregnancy outcomes.

METHODS

Outcomes were compared for primigravidas with a current singleton gestation enrolled at <20 weeks' gestation in a maternity risk screening and education program (n = 81 486). Patient-reported maternal characteristics and pregnancy outcomes were compared for women with and without NVP and within the NVP group for those with and without poor weight gain.

RESULTS

6.4% of women reported NVP as a pregnancy complication. Women reporting NVP were more likely to be younger, obese, single and smoke. They had higher rates of preterm delivery, pregnancy-induced hypertension and low birth weight <2500 g. Almost one-quarter of women with NVP had lower than recommended weight gain. Poor weight gain was associated with a higher incidence of adverse outcomes. Obesity, tobacco use and poor pregnancy weight gain independently increased the odds of an adverse outcome.

CONCLUSION

NVP and subsequent poor weight gain may be associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Correlation between depression, anxiety, and nausea and vomiting during pregnancy in an in vitro fertilization population: a pilot study

The study objective is to compare the prevalence of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) in singleton and twin gestations conceived via in vitro fertilization (IVF), and to analyze the impact of associated psychological factors. A cohort study on 45 singleton and 12 twin gestations was conducted at an academic practice. Three validated questionnaires assessing anxiety; depression; and NVP at baseline, 10-12 weeks, and 20-22 weeks gestation were used. The prevalence of NVP was compared between twins and singletons and its association with depression and anxiety was determined. Significantly more subjects with twin pregnancies reported NVP at 10-12 weeks of gestation. NVP was not associated with baseline depression or anxiety scores. There were no differences in depression scores between the groups at any time. A trend toward higher anxiety scores among twin gestations at 10-12 weeks was significant at 20-22 weeks. Within the twin group, anxiety scores remained stable, but scores for singletons decreased significantly from 10-12 weeks to 20-22 weeks. NVP is more common in the first trimester in twins compared with singletons following IVF. In IVF pregnancies, anxiety scores, but not depression scores, are higher in women with twin gestations. Women undergoing infertility treatment should be counseled accordingly when discussing the risks associated with multiple gestations.

Prevalence and patterns of nitrosatable drug use among U.S. women during early pregnancy

BACKROUND

Experimental evidence indicates that certain drugs, that are secondary or tertiary amines or amides, form N-nitroso compounds in the presence of nitrite in an acidic environment. Nitrosatable drugs have been associated with birth defects in a few epidemiologic studies. This study describes the prevalence and patterns of nitrosatable drug use among U.S. women during early pregnancy and examines maternal factors associated with such use.

METHODS

Data were analyzed from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study and included 6807 mothers who gave birth to babies without major congenital malformations during 1997 to 2005. Information was collected by telephone interview about medication use, demographic factors, and maternal health. Drugs taken during the first trimester were classified according to nitrosatability, amine and amide functional groups, and primary indication of use.

RESULTS

Approximately 24% of the women took one or more nitrosatable drugs during the first trimester, including 12.4%, 12.2%, and 7.6% who respectively took secondary amines, tertiary amines, or amides. Five of the ten most commonly taken drugs were available over the counter. Women who were non-Hispanic white (29.5%), with 1 year or more college education (27.3%) or 40 years or older (28.8%) had the highest prevalence of use. Supplemental vitamin C, an inhibitor of nitrosation, was not taken by 41.6% and 19.3% of nitrosatable drug users during the first and second months of pregnancy, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

In this U.S. population, ingestion of drugs classified as nitrosatable was common during the first trimester of pregnancy, especially among non-Hispanic white, more educated, and older mothers. Birth Defects Research (Part A) 2011. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Understanding the stigma of hyperemesis gravidarum: qualitative findings from an action research study

BACKGROUND

Severe nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (hyperemesis gravidarum) can be a distressing and debilitating condition when it is uncontrolled. For all concerned, hyperemesis gravidarum can be difficult to treat satisfactorily, and women tend to be admitted to a hospital several times during early pregnancy. Our research objectives were to describe the experience of hyperemesis gravidarum from the perspective of affected women and to explore with health care professionals the barriers and facilitators to caring for women with the condition.

METHODS

A qualitative research design was used. A total of 18 women were interviewed, of whom 8 had two or more interviews. Seven focus groups were conducted with health care professionals. Thematic data analysis was undertaken.

RESULTS

The main themes emerging from the women's data were the effect and burden of the symptoms of the condition and feeling unpopular with staff. From the practitioner data, the main themes were the validity (or invalidity) of hospitalization for women, skepticism of the severity of symptoms, the psychological and social dimensions of the condition, and inadequate primary care services.

CONCLUSIONS

The main findings revealed that hyperemesis gravidarum is a debilitating condition and that the unhelpful attitudes of practitioners may affect whether women access timely and appropriate care. Many women appear to be unsupported by primary care services and are distressed when perceived either as "time wasters" or someone else's responsibility. We propose that a tailored assessment and care plan for each woman is needed to help them control their symptoms, which ideally should be delivered in the community.

Meta-analysis: do irritable bowel syndrome symptoms vary between men and women?

BACKGROUND

Studies suggest that sex and gender-related differences exist in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but data is often conflicting.

AIM

To evaluate gender differences and the effect of menstrual cycle and menopausal status on IBS symptoms.

METHODS

We performed a systematic review of MEDLINE to search for studies comparing IBS symptoms between gender, menstrual cycle phases and menopausal states in IBS and/or healthy individuals. We performed meta-analyses to compare the relative risk (RR) of individual IBS symptoms between men and women.

RESULTS

Twenty-two studies measured gender differences in IBS symptoms. Women were more likely to report abdominal pain (RR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.22) and constipation-related symptoms (RR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.23) than men (all P < 0.05). However, men with IBS were more likely to report diarrhoea-related symptoms than women with IBS (RR = 0.84, 95% CI: 0.75, 0.94, P < 0.05). A systematic review of 13 studies demonstrated that both IBS and healthy women reported increased IBS symptoms during menses vs. other phases. There were insufficient data to determine the effect of menopause and hormone supplementation on IBS symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

In the general and IBS populations, gender differences in IBS symptoms exist, although these differences are modest. Studies suggest that female sex hormones influence the severity of IBS symptoms, but more studies are needed.

Sensitivity and specificity of recalled vasomotor symptoms in a multiethnic cohort

Many epidemiologic studies include symptom checklists assessing recall of symptoms over a specified time period. Little research exists regarding the congruence of short-term symptom recall with daily self-reporting. The authors assessed the sensitivity and specificity of retrospective reporting of vasomotor symptoms using data from 567 participants in the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (1997-2002). Daily assessments were considered the "gold standard" for comparison with retrospective vasomotor symptom reporting. Logistic regression was used to identify predictors of sensitivity and specificity for retrospective reporting of any vasomotor symptoms versus none in the past 2 weeks. Sensitivity and specificity were relatively constant over a 3-year period. Sensitivity ranged from 78% to 84% and specificity from 85% to 89%. Sensitivity was lower among women with fewer symptomatic days in the daily assessments and higher among women reporting vasomotor symptoms in the daily assessment on the day of retrospective reporting. Specificity was negatively associated with general symptom awareness and past smoking and was positively associated with routine physical activity and Japanese ethnicity. Because many investigators rely on symptom recall, it is important to evaluate reporting accuracy, which was relatively high for vasomotor symptoms in this study. The approach presented here would be useful for examining other symptoms or behaviors.

Multiple vaccinations, health, and recall bias within UK armed forces deployed to Iraq: cohort study

OBJECTIVE

To assess the relation between self reported number of vaccinations received and health, and between numbers of vaccinations recorded from individuals' medical records and health.

DESIGN

First phase of a cohort study.

SETTING

UK armed forces personnel.

PARTICIPANTS

4882 randomly selected military personnel deployed to Iraq since 2003 and a subset of 378 whose vaccination records were accessed.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Psychological distress, fatigue, symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, health perception, and multiple physical symptoms.

RESULTS

Personnel who reported receiving two or more vaccinations on a single day were more likely to report symptoms of fatigue (adjusted risk ratio 1.17, 95% confidence interval 1.05 to 1.30), show caseness according to the general health questionnaire (1.31, 1.13 to 1.53), and have multiple physical symptoms (1.32, 1.08 to 1.60). These associations were no longer significant when number of vaccinations recorded in individuals' medical records was used as the independent variable.

CONCLUSIONS

Multiple vaccinations given to personnel in the UK armed forces in preparation for deployment to Iraq are not associated with adverse health consequences when vaccinations are recorded objectively from medical records. Adverse health consequences associated with self reported multiple vaccinations could be explained by recall bias.

Measuring adverse outcomes in inpatient psychiatry: the reliability of nurse recall

Nurses have been used in studies to report on quality-of-care issues and may be the most feasible sources of information about adverse outcomes. To date, however, the use of nurses to recall adverse outcomes of inpatient psychiatric care has not been examined systematically. The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of psychiatric nurses' recall of physical restraint episode(s) (PRE) and assaultive/aggressive episode(s) (A/AE) and to describe the factors that influence recall. The study design was prospective and retrospective, and used a convenience sample of 36 nurses from a psychiatric hospital located in a large eastern city. Despite differences in nurse characteristics, perceptions of shift conditions, and organizational characteristics, nurse recall of PRE and A/AE was reliable overall. The majority of nurses actually recalled the exact number of events they had prospectively reported. Furthermore, the period for recall (2 vs. 4 weeks) did not significantly affect the reliability of nurse recall. These results suggest that psychiatric nurses are reliable informants of adverse outcomes. Lacking readily accessible and systematically reported data on PRE and A/AE, nurses may be the most feasible sources of information for these outcomes of inpatient psychiatric treatment. Future research should replicate these findings in other psychiatric treatment settings.

Validity of a modified Pregnancy-Unique Quantification of Emesis and Nausea (PUQE) scoring index to assess severity of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy

OBJECTIVE

The only validated nausea and vomiting of pregnancy (NVP) severity index is the Motherisk Pregnancy-Unique Quantification of Emesis and Nausea (PUQE) index that covers symptoms in the previous 12 hours. We sought to assess the validity of a modified-PUQE index that covers the entire first trimester of pregnancy by comparing NVP severity scores between the 12-hour PUQE index and our modified-PUQE index and by measuring the extent of the association between the modified-PUQE score and quality-of-life (QOL) score during the first trimester of pregnancy.

STUDY DESIGN

A prospective study that included women who attended the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine or René-Laennec clinic for their prenatal visits was conducted from 2004-2006. Women were eligible if they were > or = 18 years old and < or = 16 weeks of gestation at the time of their first prenatal visit. Women who reported NVP were asked to fill out the 12-hour PUQE, the modified PUQE index, and the Short-Form Health Survey QOL index simultaneously. Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated to determine concordance between the 2 scores. Linear regression models were built to measure the association between the modified-PUQE score and Short-Form Health Survey QOL scores.

RESULTS

Among participants (n = 287), the mean NVP severity score was 5.7 vs 6.7 on the 12-hour PUQE and modified PUQE, respectively (P < .05). There was substantial concordance between the indices (intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.71). Severity of NVP that was measured by the new modified index was associated with QOL.

CONCLUSION

We are confident that, on the basis of the modified-PUQE, the relationship between QOL and severity of NVP justify the use of this new index.

Ovarian cancer: Can we make the clinical diagnosis earlier?

BACKGROUND

Patients with ovarian cancer often report having symptoms for months before diagnosis, but such findings are subject to recall bias. The aim of this study was to provide an objective evaluation of symptoms that precede a diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

METHODS

Medicare provider claims linked to records in the California Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results data base were utilized to extract diagnosis and procedure codes for 1985 women age 68 years or older who resided in California with ovarian cancer, 6024 elderly women with localized breast cancer, and 10,941 age-matched, Medicare-enrolled women without cancer. Prevalence of rates of symptom-related diagnoses and procedure codes in Medicare claims records were obtained during 3-month periods up to 36 months before diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

RESULTS

From 1 month to 3 months before patients were diagnosed with ovarian cancer, the frequency and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) for 4 "target symptom" code groups were: abdominal pain (frequency, 30.6%; OR, 6.0; 95%CI, 5.1-6.9), abdominal swelling (frequency, 16.5%; OR, 30.9; 95%CI, 21.4-44.8), gastrointestinal symptoms (frequency, 8.4%; OR, 2.3; 95%CI, 1.8-3.0), and pelvic pain (frequency, 5.4%; OR, 4.3; 95%CI, 2.8-6.7). The adjusted odds for abdominal swelling codes was elevated 10-12 months before diagnosis (OR, 2.4; 95%CI, 1.2-4.6) for abdominal pain codes 7-9 months before diagnosis (OR, 1.3; 95%CI, 1.1-1.7). Abdominal imaging (frequency, 7.0%; OR, 1.3; 95%CI, 1.0-1.7) and pelvic imaging/CA125 (frequency, 3.7%; OR, 2.4; 95%CI, 1.7-3.4) showed an elevated frequency and adjusted odds 4-6 months before diagnosis. Patients with claims codes for "target symptoms" 4-36 months before diagnosis were more likely to have abdominal imaging (61.1%) or gastrointestinal procedures (30.8%) than pelvic imaging/CA125 (25.3%).

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with ovarian cancer were more likely than patients with breast cancer and women in a cancer-free control group to have target symptom codes (particularly abdominal swelling and pain) > 6 months before diagnosis. The evaluation of women with unexplained "target symptoms" should include pelvic imaging and/or CA125.

Zur Problematik von Akupunkturstudien am Beispiel der Methodik von gerac

OBJECTIVE

Conflicting or ambivalent findings on the effectiveness of body acupuncture in pain treatment are often attributed to flaws in study methodology. The paper describes the methodology used for the German Acupuncture Trials (gerac), which demonstrates that it is possible to design acupuncture studies in accordance with the standards of good clinical practice.

METHOD

Approximately 1000 chronic pain sufferers per indication (migraine, tension-type headache, low back pain (cLBP), or gonarthrosis) are randomly allocated to one of three treatment groups (verum acupuncture, sham acupuncture, or established conservative therapy). Patients are blind to the type of acupuncture. All patients receive ten sessions of treatment (two per week) with an option of adding five more treatments in cases of slight but insufficient improvement (number of headache days or von Korff pain score). Participating physicians are in private practice, representing a variety of specialties. All have completed at least a 140-hour training course in acupuncture. Mandatory and optional verum and sham points are predefined. The point selection is individualized according to the criteria of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Primary outcome measures are number of headache days per month, von Korff Graded Chronic Pain Scale or Hannover Functional Ability Questionnaire (cLBP), or WOMAC scores (gonarthrosis). Data are assessed by trained telephone interviewers not involved in treatment and blind to types of acupuncture.

PRESENT STATUS

Over 500 participating physicians in ten urban areas of Germany. Patient recruitment for cLBP and gonarthrosis was completed in November 2003 and March 2004 respectively. Recruitment for chronic headaches will be completed in autumn 2004.

CONCLUSIONS

The gerac trials prove that it is possible to design and carry out acupuncture studies in accordance to stringent standards of methodology and clinical practice. The results will form a basis for the assessment of acupuncture effectiveness in Germany and abroad.