Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2013
Review Meta AnalysisRoutine scale and polish for periodontal health in adults.
Many dentists or hygienists provide scaling and polishing for patients at regular intervals, even if those patients are considered to be at low risk of developing periodontal disease. There is debate over the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of 'routine scaling and polishing' and the 'optimal' frequency at which it should be provided for healthy adults.A 'routine scale and polish' treatment is defined as scaling or polishing or both of the crown and root surfaces of teeth to remove local irritational factors (plaque, calculus, debris and staining), that does not involve periodontal surgery or any form of adjunctive periodontal therapy such as the use of chemotherapeutic agents or root planing. ⋯ There is insufficient evidence to determine the effects of routine scale and polish treatments. High quality trials conducted in general dental practice settings with sufficiently long follow-up periods (five years or more) are required to address the objectives of this review.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2013
ReviewLow molecular weight heparin for prevention of microvascular occlusion in digital replantation.
The success of digital replantation is highly dependent on the patency of the repaired vessels after microvascular anastomosis. Antithrombotic agents are frequently used for preventing vascular occlusion. Low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) has been reported to be as effective as unfractionated heparin (UFH) in peripheral vascular surgery, but with fewer adverse effects. Its benefit in microvascular surgery such as digital replantation is unclear. ⋯ Current limited evidence based on two small-scaled low-to-medium quality randomised trials found no differences in the success rate of replantation between LMWH and UFH, but a lower risk of postoperative bleeding and hypocoagulability after the use of LMWH. Further well-designed and adequately powered clinical trials are warranted.
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Herbal medicines are used as treatment for viral diseases such as viral myocarditis, and numerous clinical trials have been conducted to investigate their efficacy. Despite this wealth of evidence, the role of herbal medicines in the treatment of viral myocarditis has yet to be established. This is an update of a review published in 2012. ⋯ Since no new trials were identified in the updated search in 2013, the conclusions remain the same as they were in 2012. There is no evidence of benefit of herbal medicine on all cause mortality. Some herbal medicines may lead to improvement of ventricular premature beat, electrocardiogram, levels of myocardial enzymes, and cardiac function in viral myocarditis. However, these findings should be interpreted with care, due to the risk of bias of the included studies, small sample size, and limited number of trials on individual herbs. Further robust trials are needed to explore the use of herbal medicines for viral myocarditis.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2013
Review Meta AnalysisPercutaneous cholecystostomy for high-risk surgical patients with acute calculous cholecystitis.
The management of people at high risk of perioperative death due to their general condition (high-risk surgical patients) with acute calculous cholecystitis is controversial, with no clear guidelines. In particular, the role of percutaneous cholecystostomy in these patients has not been defined. ⋯ Based on the current available evidence from randomised clinical trials, we are unable to determine the role of percutaneous cholecystostomy in the clinical management of high-risk surgical patients with acute cholecystitis. There is a need for adequately powered randomised clinical trials of low risk of bias on this issue.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2013
Review Meta AnalysisPhysical exercise training interventions for children and young adults during and after treatment for childhood cancer.
A decreased physical fitness and impaired social functioning has been reported in patients and survivors of childhood cancer. This is influenced by the negative effects of disease and treatment of childhood cancer and by behavioural and social elements. Exercise training for adults during or after cancer therapy has frequently been reported to improve physical fitness and social functioning. More recently, literature on this subject became available for children and young adults with cancer, both during and after treatment. ⋯ The effects of physical exercise training interventions for childhood cancer participants are not yet convincing due to small numbers of participants and insufficient study methodology. Despite that, first results show a trend towards an improved physical fitness in the intervention group compared to the control group. Changes in physical fitness were seen by improved body composition, flexibility, and cardiorespiratory fitness. However, the evidence is limited and these positive effects were not found for the other assessed outcomes, such as muscle strength/endurance, the level of daily activity, health-related quality of life, and fatigue. There is a need for more studies with comparable aims and interventions, using higher numbers of participants and for studies with another childhood cancer population than ALL only.