Plos One
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Review Meta Analysis
Association between Polymorphisms in Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Gene and Response to Chemotherapies in Colorectal Cancer: A Meta-Analysis.
Some studies have investigated the effects of polymorphisms in the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene on responsiveness to chemotherapy for colorectal cancer (CRC) and have shown inconclusive results. ⋯ CC vs. CA of the VEGF -2578 C/A polymorphism and CC+CT vs. TT of the VEGF -460 C/T polymorphism might be predictive factors of responsiveness to chemotherapy in CRC. However, single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the VEGF gene lacked sufficient predictive ability to determine whether patients with CRC should add anti-angiogenic agents to their chemotherapy regimens.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Treatment as Required versus Regular Monthly Treatment in the Management of Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
To investigate whether treatment as required 'pro re nata' (PRN) versus regular monthly treatment regimens lead to differences in outcomes in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). Regular monthly administration of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors is an established gold standard treatment, but this approach is costly. Replacement of monthly by PRN treatment can only be justified if there is no difference in patient relevant outcomes. ⋯ PRN treatment resulted in minor but statistically significant decrease in mean BCVA which may not be clinically meaningful. There is a small increase in risk of systemic adverse events for PRN treated patients. Overall, the results indicate that an individualized treatment approach with anti-VEGF using visual acuity and OCT-guided re-treatment criteria may be appropriate for most patients with nAMD.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Chemotherapy plus Erlotinib versus Chemotherapy Alone for Treating Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: A Meta-Analysis.
Whether a combination of chemotherapy and erlotinib is beneficial for advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains controversial. This study aimed to summarize the currently available evidence and compare the efficacy and safety of chemotherapy plus erlotinib versus chemotherapy alone for treating advanced NSCLC. ⋯ Combination of chemotherapy and erlotinib is a viable treatment option for patients with NSCLC, especially for patients who never smoked and patients with EGFR mutation-positive disease. In addition, intercalated administration is an effective combinatorial strategy.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
The Intraocular Pressure under Deep versus Moderate Neuromuscular Blockade during Low-Pressure Robot Assisted Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy in a Randomized Trial.
This study aimed to determine whether continuous deep neuromuscular blockade (NMB) improves the surgical conditions and facilitates robotic-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALRP) under low intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) to attenuate the increase in intraocular pressure (IOP) during CO2 pneumoperitoneum in the steep Trendelenburg (ST) position. ⋯ The current study demonstrated that continuous deep NMB may improve surgical conditions and facilitate RALRP at a low IAP, resulting in significant attenuation of the increase on IOP. Moreover, low-pressure pneumoperitoneum, facilitated by deep NMB still provided acceptable surgical conditions.
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Review Meta Analysis
Effects of Fentanyl on Emergence Agitation in Children under Sevoflurane Anesthesia: Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
The goal of this meta-analysis study was to assess the effects of fentanyl on emergence agitation (EA) under sevoflurane anesthesia in children. ⋯ Our meta-analysis suggests that fentanyl decreases the incidence of EA under sevoflurane anesthesia in children and postoperative pain, but has a higher incidence of PONV. Considering the inherent limitations of the included studies, more RCTs with extensive follow-up should be performed to validate our findings in the future.