Background Indwelling pleural catheters are an effective treatment option for patients with malignant pleural effusions. Despite their popularity, there remains a paucity of data on the patient experience and key patient-centred outcomes. Objective To investigate the experience of patients receiving an indwelling pleural catheter to better inform and identify potential areas for improvement in care. Methods This was a multicentre survey study at three academic, tertiary-care centres in Canada. Patients with a diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion who had an indwelling pleural catheter inserted were included. An adapted questionnaire specific to indwelling pleural catheters was used with responses recorded on a 4-point Likert scale. Patients completed the questionnaire in-person or by phone at 2-week and 3-month follow-up appointments. Results A total of 105 patients were enrolled in the study with 84 patients included in the final analysis. At the 2-week follow-up, patient-reported improvements in dyspnoea and quality of life from indwelling pleural catheter were high at 93% and 87%, respectively. The predominant issues identified were discomfort at time of insertion (58%), itching (49%), difficulty with sleeping (39%), discomfort with home drainage (36%) and the pleural catheter reminding patients of their disease (63%). Avoiding hospitalisation for the management of dyspnoea was important to 95% of patients. Findings were similar at 3 months. Conclusions Indwelling pleural catheters are an effective intervention to directly improve dyspnoea and quality of life but have important disadvantages for some; clinicians and patients should be aware of these when making an informed decision regarding treatment. All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as online supplemental information.

中文翻译：

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患者对使用留置胸膜导管治疗恶性胸腔积液的看法

背景 留置胸膜导管是恶性胸腔积液患者的有效治疗选择。尽管它们很受欢迎，但有关患者体验和以患者为中心的关键结果的数据仍然很少。目的 调查接受留置胸膜导管的患者的经历，以更好地了解和确定护理中需要改进的潜在领域。方法 这是在加拿大三个学术、三级护理中心进行的多中心调查研究。诊断为恶性胸腔积液并插入留置胸膜导管的患者也被纳入其中。使用专门针对留置胸膜导管的改良问卷，并以 4 点李克特量表记录反应。患者在两周和三个月的随访预约中亲自或通过电话填写问卷。结果共纳入105例患者，最终分析84例。在两周的随访中，患者报告留置胸膜导管后呼吸困难和生活质量的改善分别高达 93% 和 87%。发现的主要问题是插入时的不适（58%）、瘙痒（49%）、睡眠困难（39%）、家庭引流不适（36%）以及胸膜导管提醒患者其疾病（63%） 。对于 95% 的患者来说，避免住院治疗呼吸困难非常重要。3 个月时的结果相似。结论 留置胸膜导管是直接改善呼吸困难和生活质量的有效干预措施，但对某些人来说存在重大缺点；临床医生和患者在做出有关治疗的明智决定时应了解这些。与研究相关的所有数据都包含在文章中或作为在线补充信息上传。