Medicine
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[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001363.].
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Case Reports Retracted Publication
Transformation of a Nonfunctional Paraganglioma With I-123 MIBG Scintigraphy Correlation: A Case Report.
A 35-year-old woman presenting with abdominal pain was found to have mildly elevated catecholamine levels and a retroperitoneal mass. The patient underwent a negative I-123 MIBG scintigraphy scan and a nondiagnostic fine needle aspiration. Eleven years later the patient presented with a hypertensive emergency and markedly elevated catecholamine levels. ⋯ I-123 metaiodobenzylguanidine (MIBG) scintigraphy has become the imaging study of choice for paragangliomas and has a sensitivity of ∼77% to 100% in detecting functional paragangliomas. This case demonstrates scintigraphic correlation of the functional transformation of a nonfunctional paraganglioma in a time span of ∼10 years. Although there are previously published case reports of scintigraphic positive, nonfunctional paragangliomas and scintigraphic negative chromaffin cell tumors, there has been no prior documented case of scintigraphic transformation on MIBG.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Comparative Efficacy and Safety of Prostacyclin Analogs for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: A Network Meta-Analysis.
Prostacyclin analogs, such as epoprostenol, treprostinil, iloprost, and beraprost, have long been used for pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) treatment, yet their relative efficiency remains disputed. Eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving the 4 therapies mentioned above were retrieved from PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane (up to August 1, 2015). Odds ratios (ORs) were estimated for dichotomous data (mortality, functional class (FC) amelioration, and discontinuation); standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for continuous data (6-min walk distance [6-MWD]). ⋯ As suggested by indirect comparisons among 4 prostanoids, epoprostenol appears to result in remarkably favorable FC amelioration comparing to other regimens (all P < 0.05). Participants taking beraprost were more probable to withdraw in comparison with those administrated with iloprost (OR = 10.07; 95% CI: 1.47-160.65). Taking mortality, FC amelioration, discontinuation, and 6-MWD into account, epoprostenol could be recommended as an alternative treatment for patients with moderate/advanced PAH.
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Placebo-controlled randomized trials are often used to evaluate the absolute effect of new treatments and are considered gold standard for clinical trials. No studies, however, have yet been conducted evaluating the reporting quality of placebo-controlled randomized trials. The current study aims to assess the reporting quality of placebo-controlled randomized trials on treatment of diabetes with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in Mainland China and to provide recommendations for improvements. ⋯ Although a scoring system was created according to the CONSORT 2010 checklist, it was not designed as an assessment tool. According to CONSORT 2010, the reporting quality of placebo-controlled randomized trials on the treatment of diabetes with TCM improved after 2010. Future improvements, however, are still needed, particularly in methods sections.
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Intravenous Versus Oral Iron for the Treatment of Anemia in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Anemia is the most prevalent extraintestinal complication of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Our aim was to evaluate the comparative efficacy and harm of intravenous (IV) versus oral iron supplementation for correcting anemia in adult IBD patients. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to integrate evidence from randomized controlled trials having enrolled adults with IBD, and comparing IV versus oral iron (head-to-head) for correcting iron-deficiency anemia. ⋯ We found no evidence of publication bias, or between-study heterogeneity, across all analyses. Risk of bias was high across primary studies, because patients and personnel were not blinded to the intervention. IV iron appears to be more effective and better tolerated than oral iron for the treatment of IBD-associated anemia.