Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Pressure, from lying or sitting on a particular part of the body results in reduced oxygen and nutrient supply, impaired drainage of waste products and damage to cells. If a patient with an existing pressure ulcer continues to lie or bear weight on the affected area, the tissues become depleted of blood flow and there is no oxygen or nutrient supply to the wound, and no removal of waste products from the wound, all of which are necessary for healing. Patients who cannot reposition themselves require assistance. International best practice advocates the use of repositioning as an integral component of a pressure ulcer management strategy. This review has been conducted to clarify the role of repositioning in the management of patients with pressure ulcers. ⋯ Despite the widespread use of repositioning as a component of the management plan for individuals with existing pressure ulcers, no randomised trials exist that assess the effects of repositioning patients on the healing rates of pressure ulcers. Therefore, we cannot conclude whether repositioning patients improves the healing rates of pressure ulcers. The effect of repositioning on pressure ulcer healing needs to be evaluated.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
ReviewPalliative pharmacological sedation for terminally ill adults.
Terminally ill people experience a variety of symptoms in the last hours and days of life, including delirium, agitation, anxiety, terminal restlessness, dyspnoea, pain, vomiting, and psychological and physical distress. In the terminal phase of life, these symptoms may become refractory, and unable to be controlled by supportive and palliative therapies specifically targeted to these symptoms. Palliative sedation therapy is one potential solution to providing relief from these refractory symptoms. Sedation in terminally ill people is intended to provide relief from refractory symptoms that are not controlled by other methods. Sedative drugs such as benzodiazepines are titrated to achieve the desired level of sedation; the level of sedation can be easily maintained and the effect is reversible. ⋯ There was insufficient evidence about the efficacy of palliative sedation in terms of a person's quality of life or symptom control. There was evidence that palliative sedation did not hasten death, which has been a concern of physicians and families in prescribing this treatment. However, this evidence comes from low quality studies, so should be interpreted with caution. Further studies that specifically measure the efficacy and quality of life in sedated people, compared with non-sedated people, and quantify adverse effects are required.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisAntiepileptic drugs for seizure control in people with neurocysticercosis.
Neurocysticercosis is the most common parasitic infection of the brain. Epilepsy is the commonest clinical presentation, though it may also present with headache, symptoms of raised intracranial tension, hydrocephalus and ocular symptoms depending upon the localisation of the parasitic cysts. Anthelmintic drugs, anti-oedema drugs, such as steroids and antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) form the mainstay of treatment. ⋯ Despite neurocysticercosis being the most common cause of epilepsy worldwide, there is currently no evidence available regarding the use of AEDs as prophylaxis for preventing seizures among people presenting with symptoms other than seizures. For those presenting with seizures, there is no reliable evidence regarding the duration of treatment required. There is therefore a need for large scale randomised controlled trials to address these questions.
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This is an updated version of the original Cochrane review published in The Cochrane Library, Issue 1, 2002.Yoga may induce relaxation and stress reduction, and influence the electroencephalogram and the autonomic nervous system, thereby controlling seizures. Yoga would be an attractive therapeutic option for epilepsy if proved effective. ⋯ Study of 50 subjects with epilepsy from two trials reveals possible beneficial effect in control of seizures. Results of the overall efficacy analysis show that yoga treatment was better when compared with no intervention or interventions other than yoga (postural exercises mimicking yoga). There was no difference between yoga and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. However no reliable conclusions can be drawn regarding the efficacy of yoga as a treatment for uncontrolled epilepsy, in view of methodological deficiencies such as limited number of studies, limited number of participants randomised to yoga, lack of blinding and limited data on quality-of-life outcome. Physician blinding would normally be taken to be the person delivering the intervention, whereas we think the 'physician' would in fact be the outcome assessor (who could be blinded), so that would be a reduction in detection bias rather than performance bias. In addition, evidence to inform outcomes is limited and of low quality. Further high-quality research is needed to fully evaluate the efficacy of yoga for refractory epilepsy.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisInositol in preterm infants at risk for or having respiratory distress syndrome.
Inositol is an essential nutrient required by human cells in culture for growth and survival. Inositol promotes maturation of several components of surfactant and may play a critical role in fetal and early neonatal life. ⋯ Inositol supplementation results in statistically significant and clinically important reductions in important short-term adverse neonatal outcomes. A large size multi-centre randomised controlled trial is currently ongoing and the trial will likely confirm or refute the findings from this systematic review.