Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisChemotherapy for children with medulloblastoma.
Post-surgical radiotherapy (RT) in combination with chemotherapy is considered as standard of care for medulloblastoma in children. Chemotherapy has been introduced to improve survival and to reduce RT-induced adverse effects. Reduction of RT-induced adverse effects was achieved by deleting (craniospinal) RT in very young children and by diminishing the dose and field to the craniospinal axis and reducing the boost volume to the tumour bed in older children. ⋯ Based on the evidence identified in this systematic review, a benefit of chemotherapy cannot be excluded, but at this moment we are unable to draw a definitive conclusion regarding treatment with or without chemotherapy. Treatment results must be viewed in the context of the complete therapy (e.g. the effect of surgery and craniospinal RT), and the different chemotherapy protocols used. This systematic review only allowed a conclusion on the concept of treatment, not on the best strategy regarding specific chemotherapeutic agents and radiation dose. Several factors complicated the interpretation of results including the long time span between studies with important changes in treatment in the meantime. 'No evidence of effect', as identified in this review, is not the same as 'evidence of no effect'. The fact that no significant differences between treatment arms were identified could, besides the earlier mentioned reasons, also be the result of low power or too short a follow-up period. Even though RCTs are the highest level of evidence, it should be recognised that data from non-randomised studies are available, for example on the use of chemotherapy only in very young children with promising results for children without metastatic disease. We found only one RCT addressing standard-dose RT without chemotherapy versus reduced-dose RT with chemotherapy, so no definitive conclusions can be made. More high-quality research is needed.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisTherapist-supported Internet cognitive behavioural therapy for anxiety disorders in adults.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an evidence-based treatment for anxiety disorders. Many people have difficulty accessing treatment, due to a variety of obstacles. Researchers have therefore explored the possibility of using the Internet to deliver CBT; it is important to ensure the decision to promote such treatment is grounded in high quality evidence. ⋯ Therapist-supported ICBT appears to be an efficacious treatment for anxiety in adults. The evidence comparing therapist-supported ICBT to waiting list, attention, information, or online discussion group only control was low to moderate quality, the evidence comparing therapist-supported ICBT to unguided ICBT was low to very low quality, and comparisons of therapist-supported ICBT to face-to-face CBT was low to moderate quality. Further research is needed to better define and measure any potential harms resulting from treatment. These findings suggest that therapist-supported ICBT is more efficacious than a waiting list, attention, information, or online discussion group only control, and that there may not be a significant difference in outcome between unguided CBT and therapist-supported ICBT; however, this latter finding must be interpreted with caution due to imprecision. The evidence suggests that therapist-supported ICBT may not be significantly different from face-to-face CBT in reducing anxiety. Future research should involve equivalence trials comparing ICBT and face-to-face CBT, examine the importance of the role of the therapist in ICBT, and include effectiveness trials of ICBT in real-world settings. A timely update to this review is needed given the fast pace of this area of research.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisHysteroscopy for treating subfertility associated with suspected major uterine cavity abnormalities.
Observational studies suggest higher pregnancy rates after the hysteroscopic removal of endometrial polyps, submucous fibroids, uterine septum or intrauterine adhesions, which are detectable in 10% to 15% of women seeking treatment for subfertility. ⋯ A large benefit with the hysteroscopic removal of submucous fibroids for improving the chance of clinical pregnancy in women with otherwise unexplained subfertility cannot be excluded. The hysteroscopic removal of endometrial polyps suspected on ultrasound in women prior to IUI may increase the clinical pregnancy rate. More randomised studies are needed to substantiate the effectiveness of the hysteroscopic removal of suspected endometrial polyps, submucous fibroids, uterine septum or intrauterine adhesions in women with unexplained subfertility or prior to IUI, IVF or ICSI.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2015
Review Meta AnalysisAzithromycin for acute lower respiratory tract infections.
Acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) range from acute bronchitis and acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis to pneumonia. Approximately five million people die from acute respiratory tract infections annually. Among these, pneumonia represents the most frequent cause of mortality, hospitalisation and medical consultation. Azithromycin is a macrolide antibiotic, structurally modified from erythromycin and noted for its activity against some gram-negative organisms associated with respiratory tract infections, particularly Haemophilus influenzae (H. influenzae). ⋯ There is unclear evidence that azithromycin is superior to amoxycillin or amoxyclav in treating acute LRTI. In patients with acute bronchitis of a suspected bacterial cause, azithromycin tends to be more effective in terms of lower incidence of treatment failure and adverse events than amoxycillin or amoxyclav. However, most studies were of unclear methodological quality and had small sample sizes; future trials of high methodological quality and adequate sizes are needed.
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The treatment baclofen shows potential for rapidly reducing symptoms of severe alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) in people with alcoholism. Treatment with baclofen is easy to manage and rarely produces euphoria or other pleasant effects, or craving for the drug. This is an updated version of the original Cochrane review published in Issue 2, 2013. ⋯ The evidence for recommending baclofen for AWS is insufficient. We therefore need more well-designed RCTs to prove its efficacy and safety.