Cochrane Db Syst Rev
-
Pre-operative anaemia is common and occurs in up to 76% of patients. It is associated with increased peri-operative allogeneic blood transfusions, longer hospital lengths of stay and increased morbidity and mortality. Iron deficiency is one of the most common causes of this anaemia. Oral iron therapy has traditionally been used to treat anaemia but newer, safer parenteral iron preparations have been shown to be more effective in other conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, chronic heart failure and post-partum haemorrhage. A limited number of studies look at iron therapy for the treatment of pre-operative anaemia. The aim of this Cochrane review is to summarise the evidence for use of iron supplementation, both enteral and parenteral, for the management of pre-operative anaemia. ⋯ The use of iron therapy for pre-operative anaemia does not show a statistically significant reduction in the proportion of patients who received an allogeneic blood transfusion compared to no iron therapy. However, the 38 patients in our analysis falls far short of the 819 patients our information size calculation recommended to detect a 30% reduction in blood transfusions. Intravenous iron may be more effective than oral iron at increasing haemoglobin. However, all these conclusions are drawn from only three small randomised controlled studies. Further well designed, adequately powered randomised controlled studies are required to determine the true effectiveness of iron therapy for pre-operative anaemia.
-
Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Dec 2015
ReviewMulti-disciplinary rehabilitation for acquired brain injury in adults of working age.
Evidence from systematic reviews demonstrates that multi-disciplinary rehabilitation is effective in the stroke population, in which older adults predominate. However, the evidence base for the effectiveness of rehabilitation following acquired brain injury (ABI) in younger adults has not been established, perhaps because this scenario presents different methodological challenges in research. ⋯ Problems following ABI vary. Consequently, different interventions and combinations of interventions are required to meet the needs of patients with different problems. Patients who present acutely to hospital with mild brain injury benefit from follow-up and appropriate information and advice. Those with moderate to severe brain injury benefit from routine follow-up so their needs for rehabilitation can be assessed. Intensive intervention appears to lead to earlier gains, and earlier intervention whilst still in emergency and acute care has been supported by limited evidence. The balance between intensity and cost-effectiveness has yet to be determined. Patients discharged from in-patient rehabilitation benefit from access to out-patient or community-based services appropriate to their needs. Group-based rehabilitation in a therapeutic milieu (where patients undergo neuropsychological rehabilitation in a therapeutic environment with a peer group of individuals facing similar challenges) represents an effective approach for patients requiring neuropsychological rehabilitation following severe brain injury. Not all questions in rehabilitation can be addressed by randomised controlled trials or other experimental approaches. For example, trial-based literature does not tell us which treatments work best for which patients over the long term, and which models of service represent value for money in the context of life-long care. In the future, such questions will need to be considered alongside practice-based evidence gathered from large systematic longitudinal cohort studies conducted in the context of routine clinical practice.
-
Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Dec 2015
Review Meta AnalysisPharmacological interventions for promoting smoking cessation during pregnancy.
Smoking in pregnancy is a public health problem. When used by non-pregnant smokers, pharmacotherapies (nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), bupropion and varenicline) are effective for smoking cessation, however, their efficacy and safety in pregnancy remains unknown. Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS), or e-cigarettes, are becoming widely used but their efficacy and safety when used for smoking cessation in pregnancy are also unknown. ⋯ NRT used in pregnancy for smoking cessation increases smoking cessation rates measured in late pregnancy by approximately 40%. There is evidence, suggesting that when potentially-biased, non-placebo RCTs are excluded from analyses, NRT is no more effective than placebo. There is no evidence that NRT used for smoking cessation in pregnancy has either positive or negative impacts on birth outcomes. However, evidence from the only trial to have followed up infants after birth, suggests use of NRT promotes healthy developmental outcomes in infants. Further research evidence on NRT efficacy and safety is needed, ideally from placebo-controlled RCTs which achieve higher adherence rates and which monitor infants' outcomes into childhood. Accruing data suggests that it would be ethical for future RCTs to investigate higher doses of NRT than those tested in the included studies.
-
Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Dec 2015
Review Meta AnalysisProbiotics for the prevention of pediatric antibiotic-associated diarrhea.
Antibiotics are frequently prescribed in children. They alter the microbial balance within the gastrointestinal tract, commonly resulting in antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). Probiotics may prevent AAD via restoration of the gut microflora. ⋯ Moderate quality evidence suggests a protective effect of probiotics in preventing AAD. Our pooled estimate suggests a precise (RR 0.46; 95% CI 0.35 to 0.61) probiotic effect with a NNT of 10. Among the various probiotics evaluated, Lactobacillus rhamnosus or Saccharomyces boulardii at 5 to 40 billion colony forming units/day may be appropriate given the modest NNT and the likelihood that adverse events are very rare. It is premature to draw conclusions about the efficacy and safety of other probiotic agents for pediatric AAD. Although no serious adverse events were observed among otherwise healthy children, serious adverse events have been observed in severely debilitated or immuno-compromised children with underlying risk factors including central venous catheter use and disorders associated with bacterial/fungal translocation. Until further research has been conducted, probiotic use should be avoided in pediatric populations at risk for adverse events. Future trials would benefit from a standard and valid outcomes to measure AAD.
-
Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Dec 2015
ReviewInternet-based interventions for the secondary prevention of coronary heart disease.
The Internet could provide a means of delivering secondary prevention programmes to people with coronary heart disease (CHD). ⋯ In general, evidence was of low quality due to lack of blinding, loss to follow-up, and uncertainty around the effect size. Few studies measured clinical events, and of those that did, a very small number of events were reported, and therefore no firm conclusions can be made. Similarly, there was no clear evidence of effect for cardiovascular risk factors, although again the number of studies reporting these was small. There was some evidence for beneficial effects on HRQOL, dietary outcomes, and physical activity, although firm conclusions cannot yet be made. The effects on healthcare utilisation and cost-effectiveness are also inconclusive, and trials are yet to measure the impact of Internet interventions on compliance with medication. The comparison groups differed across trials, and there were insufficient studies with usable data for subgroup analyses. We intend to study the intensity of comparison groups in future updates of this review when more evidence is available. The completion of the ongoing trials will add to the evidence base.