#DOES PALLIATIVE SEDATION HASTEN DEATH FULL#

Only one study measured unintended adverse effects of sedative drugs and found no major events however, four of 70 participants appeared to have drug‐induced delirium. Control of other symptoms appeared to be similar in sedated and non‐sedated people. The results demonstrated that despite sedation, delirium and dyspnoea were still troublesome symptoms in these people in the last few days of life. Five studies measured symptom control, using four different methods, so pooling was not possible. No studies measured quality of life or participant well‐being, which was the primary outcome of the review. Risk of bias was high, due to lack of randomisation. All were consecutive case series, with only three having prospective data collection. No studies were randomised or quasi‐randomised. The searches resulted in 14 included studies, involving 4167 adults, of whom 1137 received palliative sedation. We carried out no meta‐analyses due to insufficient data for pooling on any outcome therefore, we reported outcomes narratively. A third review author acted as arbiter for both stages. Two review authors independently carried out data extraction using standard data extraction forms.

#DOES PALLIATIVE SEDATION HASTEN DEATH FULL#

Two review authors independently screened titles and abstracts of citations, and full text of potentially eligible studies.

no control group or no within‐group comparison) (e.g.

We excluded studies with only qualitative outcomes or that had no comparison (i.e. before‐and‐after, interrupted‐time‐series) with quantitative outcomes. We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs), quasi‐RCTs, non‐RCTs, and observational studies (e.g. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL 2014, Issue 11), MEDLINE (1946 to November 2014), and EMBASE (1974 to December 2014), using search terms representing the sedative drug names and classes, disease stage, and study designs. To assess the evidence for the benefit of palliative pharmacological sedation on quality of life, survival, and specific refractory symptoms in terminally ill adults during their last few days of life. Sedative drugs such as benzodiazepines are titrated to achieve the desired level of sedation the level of sedation can be easily maintained and the effect is reversible. Sedation in terminally ill people is intended to provide relief from refractory symptoms that are not controlled by other methods. Palliative sedation therapy is one potential solution to providing relief from these refractory symptoms. In the terminal phase of life, these symptoms may become refractory, and unable to be controlled by supportive and palliative therapies specifically targeted to these symptoms. Terminally ill people experience a variety of symptoms in the last hours and days of life, including delirium, agitation, anxiety, terminal restlessness, dyspnoea, pain, vomiting, and psychological and physical distress.

Does palliative sedation hasten death