Constipation Assessment Scale: studio osservazionale nei setting di cure palliative

. Introduction. Palliative care improves the quality of life of people in an advanced and progressive phase of the disease, who therefore present a wide number of physical and psychosocial conditions, the management of which is sometimes very complicated. One of the problems presented by people with advanced neoplasia, is constipation, a cause of morbidity and suffering. Opioid-induced constipation is caused or exacerbated by opioid analgesics. The Constipation Assessment Scale (CAS) was developed to assess the risk of constipation, cross-culturally validated in Italian in the home palliative care setting. Materials and methods: Multicenter observational study in Hospices and Palliative Home Care Units on the territory of Lombardy Region, with non-probabilistic convenience sampling and administration of the CAS. Results. Ninety-eight advanced oncology patients participated in the study with a mean age of 75 years [Standard Deviation (SD):11; Range 45-90 years] and female most represented 53% (52). Pulmonary neoplasm was most prevalent 33% (32), followed by breast neoplasm 25% (25). The entire sample was receiving opioid analgesics and 96% (97) were receiving laxatives. The mean score of the (CAS) was 4.7 (SD:1.9; Range Score 2-10). The administration time of the scale was 192 (SD:48) seconds. Conclusions. Constipation is a major cause of distress in people with cancer. This study supports CAS as a useful tool for assessment and monitoring of constipation in palliative care settings.