Golden Jubilee National Hospital

The aim of the study is to determine whether the AQUACEL™ Ag SURGICAL cover dressing is successful in reducing the incidence of wound infection in high risk patients following total knee replacement. We will also look at the status of the wound, occurrence of blistering, biochemistry results, dressing wear time and the number of dressing changes to quantify the dressing performance.

The goal of this observational study is to assess the efficacy that the addition of novel markers cardiac function, particularly of right ventricular (RV) function in echocardiography, and ECG have in detecting pulmonary hypertension.
The main questions it aims to answer are:
Can novel markers in ECG and echocardiography suggest the presence of PH? Can existing screening guidelines be improved with the addition of these markers?

Background Pulmonary hypertension is a rare and incurable condition characterised by fatigue and breathlessness. The effects of pulmonary hypertension has a significant impact on an individual's emotional wellbeing and there are currently no established psychological interventions to improve this. Interoception is defined as the ability to perceive the internal state of the body and emerging research suggests that interventions to improve interoception can improve well-being.
Aims The project aims to develop an interoceptive based intervention for those with pulmonary hypertension and examine the feasibility and acceptability of this. Additional aims are to explore the preliminary results of the intervention.
Methods A randomised control feasibility trial will be used. Thirty-two participants will be included. Participants will be patients within the Scottish Pulmonary Vascular Unit diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension and randomly assigned to either the intervention or control (waitlist) group. The intervention will be an eight-session online group and participants will complete measures for interoception, anxiety, depression, health related quality of life, as well as a feasibility and acceptability questionnaire. Quantitative analysis will include descriptive statistics and T-tests (including non-parametric versions) to analyse the feasibility and gain a preliminary understanding of the intervention.
Practical Applications It is hoped that the findings will identify a sample size for a larger trial whilst also informing future clinical practice. This project will be written up for a suitable journal and will be presented at an appropriate conference.