Systematic reviews
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Review Meta Analysis
Low-molecular-weight heparin for prevention of placenta-mediated pregnancy complications: protocol for a systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis (AFFIRM).
Placenta-mediated pregnancy complications include pre-eclampsia, late pregnancy loss, placental abruption, and the small-for-gestational age newborn. They are leading causes of maternal, fetal, and neonatal morbidity and mortality in developed nations. Women who have experienced these complications are at an elevated risk of recurrence in subsequent pregnancies. However, despite decades of research no effective strategies to prevent recurrence have been identified, until recently. We completed a pooled summary-based meta-analysis that strongly suggests that low-molecular-weight heparin reduces the risk of recurrent placenta-mediated complications. The proposed individual patient data meta-analysis builds on this successful collaboration. The project is called AFFIRM, An individual patient data meta-analysis oF low-molecular-weight heparin For prevention of placenta-medIated pRegnancy coMplications. ⋯ PROSPERO (International Prospective Registry of Systematic Reviews) 23 December 2013, CRD42013006249.
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Review Meta Analysis
The effectiveness of computerized order entry at reducing preventable adverse drug events and medication errors in hospital settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act subsidizes implementation by hospitals of electronic health records with computerized provider order entry (CPOE), which may reduce patient injuries caused by medication errors (preventable adverse drug events, pADEs). Effects on pADEs have not been rigorously quantified, and effects on medication errors have been variable. The objectives of this analysis were to assess the effectiveness of CPOE at reducing pADEs in hospital-related settings, and examine reasons for heterogeneous effects on medication errors. ⋯ In hospital-related settings, implementing CPOE is associated with a greater than 50% decline in pADEs, although the studies used weak designs. Decreases in medication errors are similar and robust to variations in important aspects of intervention design and context. This suggests that CPOE implementation, as subsidized under the HITECH Act, may benefit public health. More detailed reporting of the context and process of implementation could shed light on factors associated with greater effectiveness.
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Meta Analysis
Effect of blood donor characteristics on transfusion outcomes: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis.
Optimal selection of blood donors is of paramount importance in ensuring the safety of blood products. The current selection process is concerned principally with the safety of the blood donor and the safety of the patient that receives the blood. Recent evidence suggests that the characteristics of the donor may affect transfusion outcomes for the recipient. ⋯ The results of this systematic review will provide an evidence base regarding the potential clinical effects of donor characteristics on transfusion recipients to better guide policy and clinical practice. The evidence gathered from this review will also identify strengths and weaknesses of published studies regarding donor characteristics and transfusion outcomes and will identify knowledge gaps to inform future research in this field of transfusion medicine.
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Review Meta Analysis
Collaborative care for the treatment of comorbid depression and coronary heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.
Depression and coronary heart disease (CHD) are frequently comorbid and portend higher morbidity, mortality and poorer quality of life. Prior systematic reviews of depression treatment randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in the population with CHD have not assessed the efficacy of collaborative care. This systematic review aims to bring together the contemporary research on the effectiveness of collaborative care interventions for depression in comorbid CHD populations. ⋯ PROSPERO CRD42014013653.
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Review Meta Analysis
Prescription opioid misuse and its relation to injection drug use and hepatitis C virus infection: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.
The production, prescription, and consumption of opioid analgesics to treat non-cancer pain have increased dramatically in the USA in the past decade. As a result, misuse of these opioids has increased; overdose and transition to riskier forms of drug use have also emerged. Research points to a trend in transition to drug injection among those misusing prescription opioids, where clusters of acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are now being reported. This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to synthesize the prevalence of prescription opioid misuse in the USA and examine the rate of transition to injection drug use and incident HCV in these new people who inject drugs (PWID). ⋯ PROSPERO CRD42014008870.