Yoga has been shown to improve pain and function compared with no exercise in people with chronic low back pain (LBP), but treatment effects are small. Given that yoga is a mind–body intervention that addresses physical as well as psychological factors, it may be more effective for patients with chronic LBP who are at high risk of poor prognosis. The study aims to investigate the efficacy of a 12-week yoga programme combined with education in reducing pain and disability for individuals with chronic LBP at high risk of poor prognosis at short (12 weeks) and intermediate (24 weeks) terms, compared with a control group receiving education only.
A randomised controlled trial will include 110 adults with chronic non-specific LBP reporting an average pain intensity of 3 points or more on a 0–10 scale over the past week and classified as high risk of poor prognosis (ie, scoring 50 points or above) on the Orebro Musculoskeletal Pain Questionnaire short-form. Participants in the control group will receive an educational booklet and attend three face-to-face lectures over a 3-month period. In the intervention group, in addition to the booklet and lectures, participants will attend group yoga sessions twice a week for 12 weeks, totalling 24 yoga sessions. The primary outcome is disability assessed at 12 weeks, measured using the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire.
The study was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (Protocol number CAAE: 57028022.0.0000.5149). Findings will be disseminated to trial participants, clinicians and the broader public and scientific community.
The study aims to assess the associated influencing oncology nurses’ perceptions of managers’ empowering leadership style and to examine the influence of sex, work experience, shift work, membership of an oncology nursing association or a scientific society, nursing educational level and specialised nursing training in oncology on oncology nurses’ perceptions of managers’ empowering leadership style and its subdimensions.
Descriptive cross-sectional study.
In March 2024, oncology nurses employed in oncology settings were invited to participate.
All Italian oncology nurses who were currently employed were eligible to participate.
The Italian version of the Empowering Leadership Questionnaire was used to assess nurses’ perceptions of managers’ performance in leading by example, participative decision-making, coaching, informing and demonstrating concern/interacting with the team.
A total of 298 nurses agreed to participate. The associated factors for an empowered leadership style across all subdimensions were sex (p=0.006) and the educational level in nursing (p=0.004). Participative decision-making, coaching, informing and demonstrating concern/interacting with the team subdimensions were associated with shift work. Participation in scientific associations (p=0.005) was also influential.
Exploring the data according to the nursing specialisation appeared intriguing, since it could be a more indicative suggestion for future interventions to implement an empowering leadership style in clinical nursing practice and better inform health policymakers to achieve the right solution in their health organisations.
Point-of-care lung ultrasound (LUS) can assist in diagnosing acute respiratory diseases for its high accuracy and immediate availability at the bedside, including older patients with frailty. Delirium represents a frequent complication of hospitalisation in this setting, frequently triggered by acute respiratory diseases. LUS may therefore help identify individuals at risk of delirium, but the association between LUS abnormalities and delirium remains unexplored.
This study is a prospective, observational, multicentre study, with the main objective of assessing the correlation between LUS abnormalities and incident delirium during hospitalisation (primary outcome). The secondary objectives are to assess correlations between lung and diaphragm ultrasound parameters and clinical outcomes including duration of delirium, severity of respiratory failure and mortality. 480 patients aged ≥65 years old, urgently hospitalised after an emergency department visit for acute respiratory complaints, will be recruited in eleven acute geriatric wards located in eight teaching hospitals across Italy. LUS examinations will be performed by skilled clinicians prior to treatment whenever feasible, and in any case within 48 hours from admission. They will also undergo comprehensive geriatric assessment, and daily delirium assessment through the 4-AT tool. The association between LUS abnormalities, related parameters (LUS score, Pleural Effusion Score) and outcomes will be assessed by linear and logistic regression models.
Ethics Committee approval of the coordinating centre (Comitato Etico Territoriale Lombardia 3, reference ID 4369_20.03.2024_M) and collaborative centres has been obtained. All participants will provide written informed consent. Study results will be publicly available following peer-reviewed publication in international scientific journals.