Medicine
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Warm needle acupuncture (WNA) is a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) therapy which combines technical advantages of acupuncture and moxibustion. Climacteric insomnia is a common symptom in climacteric women, which can seriously affect the physical and mental health of patients. Relevant studies have been reported that WNA can improve insomnia in climacteric women. In this protocol, the effectiveness and safety of WNA on insomnia in climacteric women will be explored. ⋯ PROS-PERO CRD42019125743.
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Psychological stress is a ubiquitous subjectively negative emotional experience, but excessive psychological stress has adverse effects on the happiness in our lives and physical and mental health, and may cause many health problems. Studies have found that probiotics have a certain role in alleviating negative emotions, reducing abnormal behaviors, improving cognitive function, and also showing the great potential of probiotics in relieving psychological stress. At present, many clinical trials have been carried out to intervene in populations with psychological stress with probiotic supplements, but there still lack of targeted systematic review and meta-analysis. ⋯ PROSPERO CRD42019122930.
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Meta Analysis
Association between outdoor air pollution and semen quality: Protocol for an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.
Various studies have explored the association between outdoor air pollution and semen quality. However, the results were still controversial. The object of the current meta-analysis is to evaluate the role of outdoor air pollution in semen quality. ⋯ PROSPERO CRD 42019126060.
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androgen receptor variant 7 (AR-V7) has been suggested as potential marker for treatment selection in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). The aim of the present review is to critically analyze: frequency of the AR-V7 expression in mCRPC cases-impact of AR-V7 expression on abiraterone, enzalutamide, and taxane therapy. ⋯ the suggestion is that taxane therapy is more efficacious than abiraterone or enzalutamide for men with AR-V7+ CRPC. On the contrary, clinical outcomes did not seem to differ significantly on the basis of the type of therapy used among AR-V7- cases.
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To assess the effectiveness of acupuncture in patients with post-stroke depression (PSD). ⋯ This meta-analysis provides evidence supporting the viewpoint that acupuncture is an effective and safe treatment for PSD. Subgroup analyses further revealed that acupuncture alone resulted in better outcomes than drug therapy in improving depressive symptoms. Further high-quality RCTs are needed to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture for PSD and develop standardized acupuncture protocols.