Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · May 2012
Review Meta Analysis Comparative StudyHerbal medicines for advanced colorectal cancer.
Herbal medicine has been widely used in patients with advanced colorectal cancer in China, but its efficacy has not been confirmed. ⋯ Some herbal medicines combined chemotherapy compared with chemotherapy alone showed more beneficial effects in improving 1-year, 3-year survival and quality of life.
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Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a common neurologic syndrome and is associated with iron deficiency in many patients. It is unclear whether iron therapy is effective treatment for RLS. ⋯ There is insufficient evidence to determine whether iron therapy is beneficial for the treatment of RLS. Further research to determine whether some or all types of RLS patients may benefit from iron therapy, as well as the best route of iron administration, is needed.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · May 2012
Review Meta AnalysisInterventions for smoking cessation in hospitalised patients.
Smoking contributes to reasons for hospitalisation, and the period of hospitalisation may be a good time to provide help with quitting. ⋯ High intensity behavioural interventions that begin during a hospital stay and include at least one month of supportive contact after discharge promote smoking cessation among hospitalised patients. The effect of these interventions was independent of the patient's admitting diagnosis and was found in rehabilitation settings as well as acute care hospitals. There was no evidence of effect for interventions of lower intensity or shorter duration. This update found that adding NRT to intensive counselling significantly increases cessation rates over counselling alone. There is insufficient direct evidence to conclude that adding bupropion or varenicline to intensive counselling increases cessation rates over what is achieved by counselling alone.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · May 2012
Review Meta AnalysisPacing for drug-refractory or drug-intolerant hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a genetic disease with an autosomal-dominant inheritance for which negative inotropes are the most widely used initial therapies. Observational studies and small randomised trials have suggested symptomatic and functional benefits using pacing and several theories have been put forward to explain why. Pacing, although not the primary treatment for HCM, could be beneficial to patients with relative or absolute contraindications to surgery or alcohol ablation. Several randomised controlled trials comparing pacing to other therapeutic modalities have been conducted but no Cochrane-style systematic review has been done. ⋯ Trials published to date lack information on clinically relevant end-points. Existing data is derived from small trials at high risk of bias, which concentrate on physiological measures. Their results are inconclusive. Further large and high quality trials with more appropriate outcomes are warranted.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · May 2012
Review Meta AnalysisAnti-leukotriene agents compared to inhaled corticosteroids in the management of recurrent and/or chronic asthma in adults and children.
Anti-leukotrienes (5-lipoxygenase inhibitors and leukotriene receptors antagonists) serve as alternative monotherapy to inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) in the management of recurrent and/or chronic asthma in adults and children. ⋯ As monotherapy, inhaled corticosteroids display superior efficacy to anti-leukotrienes in adults and children with persistent asthma; the superiority is particularly marked in patients with moderate airway obstruction. On the basis of efficacy, the results support the current guidelines' recommendation that inhaled corticosteroids remain the preferred monotherapy.