Data from: Systematic review: unmet supportive care needs in people diagnosed with chronic liver disease

Objective: People with chronic liver disease, particularly those with
decompensated cirrhosis, experience several potentially debilitating
complications that can have a significant impact on activities of daily
living and quality of life. These impairments combined with the associated
complex treatment mean that they are faced with specific and high levels
of supportive care needs. We aimed to review reported perspectives,
experiences and concerns of people with chronic liver disease worldwide.
This information is necessary to guide development of policies around
supportive needs screening tools and to enable prioritisation of support
services for these patients. Design: Systematic searches of PubMed,
MEDLINE, CINAHL and PsycINFO from the earliest records until 19 September
2014. Data were extracted using standardised forms. A qualitative,
descriptive approach was utilised to analyse and synthesise data. Results:
The initial search yielded 2598 reports: 26 studies reporting supportive
care needs among patients with chronic liver disease were included, but
few of them were patient-reported needs, none used a validated liver
disease-specific supportive care need assessment instrument, and only
three included patients with cirrhosis. Five key domains of supportive
care needs were identified: informational or educational (eg, educational
material, educational sessions), practical (eg, daily living), physical
(eg, controlling pruritus and fatigue), patient care and support (eg,
support groups), and psychological (eg, anxiety, sadness). Conclusions:
While several key domains of supportive care needs were identified, most
studies included hepatitis patients. There is a paucity of literature
describing the supportive care needs of the chronic liver disease
population likely to have the most needs—namely those with cirrhosis.
Assessing the supportive care needs of people with chronic liver disease
have potential utility in clinical practice for facilitating timely
referrals to support services.