Current medical research and opinion
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Comparative efficacy of antibiotics for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections (ABSSSI): a systematic review and network meta-analysis.
The objective was to conduct a systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) of existing treatments for ABSSSI focusing on the novel lipoglycopeptide oritavancin. ⋯ This NMA provides a unified framework for the comparison of all available antimicrobial agents used in the treatment of ABSSSI and is the first to assess the ECR end-point. The results suggest equivalence of clinical efficacy between vancomycin, daptomycin, linezolid, and novel antimicrobial agents including oritavancin for the treatment of ABSSSI at TOC. The wide uncertainty margins indicate the heterogeneity of the available evidence and the need for further research.
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Several lines of evidence suggest that estrogen receptor alpha (ER-α) gene polymorphism may influence the development of osteoarthritis (OA). However, the results are inconsistent. The aim of this study was to explore using a meta-analysis whether rs2234693 (ER-α PvuII T/C) polymorphism confers significant susceptibility to OA. ⋯ The present meta-analysis suggests that the rs2234693 polymorphism is associated with an increased KOA risk. Additional well designed genome-wide association studies are required to confirm the result.
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Meta Analysis
Lidocaine patch for acute pain management: a meta-analysis of prospective controlled trials.
Local anesthetic is one of the cornerstones of multimodal analgesia. We investigated the efficacy of the lidocaine patch for acute pain management. ⋯ The limitations were a small number of included studies, potential biases from some unblinded studies, clinical heterogeneity between studies, and incomplete reported data for adjunct analgesics.
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It remains uncertain whether remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) could prevent acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Thus, this meta-analysis aiming to explore the renoprotective role of RIC in patients undergoing PCI was carried out. ⋯ RIC may not only confer cardioprotection, but also reduce the incidence of AKI in patients undergoing PCI, ultimately leading to better clinical outcomes. RIC may potentially be a powerful approach conferring protection in patients undergoing PCI in future clinical practice. More large-scale trials are required to obtain a more reliable conclusion.
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Review Meta Analysis
Packaging interventions to increase medication adherence: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Inadequate medication adherence is a widespread problem that contributes to increased chronic disease complications and health care expenditures. Packaging interventions using pill boxes and blister packs have been widely recommended to address the medication adherence issue. This meta-analysis review determined the overall effect of packaging interventions on medication adherence and health outcomes. In addition, we tested whether effects vary depending on intervention, sample, and design characteristics. ⋯ Overall, meta-analysis findings support the use of packaging interventions to effectively increase medication adherence. Limitations of the study include the exclusion of packaging interventions other than pill boxes and blister packs, evidence of publication bias, and primary study sparse reporting of health outcomes and potentially interesting moderating variables such as the number of prescribed medications.