Frequency of Chemotherapy-Induced Myalgia in Cancer Patients using The Visual Analogue Scale
Аннотация
Abstract<br> Objective: The aim of the study was to find the frequency of chemotherapy-induced myalgia in<br> patients with cancer in Lahore.<br> Methodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted over a period of six months after ethical<br> approval from February to July 2021. Using a non-probability convenient sampling technique,<br> seventy eligible patients between 45-55 years of age with cancer were included in this study from<br> both public and private hospital settings on the basis of predefined eligibility criteria. A self<br> structured questionnaire including a visual analogue pain scale was used for data collection. Data<br> was analyzed using SPSS version 21. The qualitative variables were presented with pie charts and<br> quantitative variables are tabulated with frequencies and percentages.<br> Results: Mean age±SD of participants was 53±6.9 years. Out of 70 participants, 90% were females. The<br> significant outcome variables included the presence of myalgia, painful girdle, intensity of pain<br> (visual analogue scale), duration of treatment with the chemotherapy drug, dose of chemotherapy<br> drug and chemotherapy sessions. Chemotherapy-induced myalgia was 94.3% among target cancer<br> patients in Lahore.<br> Conclusion: In our study, chemotherapy-induced myalgia is alarmingly high in patients with<br> cancers. The pain is mostly moderate in nature and affects the shoulder region. Measures should be<br> adopted to mitigate the chemotherapy-induced myalgia as it adversely affects the patient's already<br> deteriorating quality of life.