Annals of internal medicine
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Meta Analysis
Meta-analysis: effect of patient self-testing and self-management of long-term anticoagulation on major clinical outcomes.
Anticoagulation with vitamin K antagonists reduces major thromboembolic complications in at-risk patients. With portable monitoring devices, patients can conduct their own international normalized ratio testing and dose adjustment at home. ⋯ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Health Services Research and Development Service.
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Meta Analysis
Meta-analysis: diagnostic performance of low-radiation-dose coronary computed tomography angiography.
A new radiation dose-saving technique for noninvasive coronary artery imaging with computed tomography (CT) is available. ⋯ None.
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Although the accuracy of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) testing for diagnosing acute decompensated heart failure has been extensively evaluated, the effect of this test on clinical outcomes remains unclear. ⋯ Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
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Review Meta Analysis
Patient-level meta-analysis: effect of measurement timing, threshold, and patient age on ability of D-dimer testing to assess recurrence risk after unprovoked venous thromboembolism.
In patients with a first unprovoked venous thromboembolism (VTE), an elevated d-dimer level after anticoagulation is stopped is a risk factor for recurrent VTE. However, questions remain about the utility of measuring d-dimer in clinical practice. ⋯ In patients with a first unprovoked VTE who have their d-dimer level measured after stopping anticoagulation, the timing of d-dimer testing, patient age, and the assay cut point used do not affect the ability of d-dimer to distinguish patients with a higher or lower risk for recurrent VTE.
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Review Meta Analysis
Meta-analysis: erythropoiesis-stimulating agents in patients with chronic kidney disease.
Previous meta-analyses suggest that treatment with erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) in chronic kidney disease (CKD) increases the risk for death. Additional randomized trials have been recently completed. ⋯ None.