Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2013
Review Meta AnalysisLinezolid versus vancomycin for skin and soft tissue infections.
The morbidity and treatment costs associated with skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) are high. Linezolid and vancomycin are antibiotics that are commonly used in treating skin and soft-tissue infections, specifically those infections due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). ⋯ Linezolid seems to be more effective than vancomycin for treating people with SSTIs, including SSTIs caused by MRSA. The available evidence is at high risk of bias and is based on studies that were supported by the pharmaceutical company that makes linezolid. Further well-designed, independently-funded, RCTs are needed to confirm the available evidence.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2013
Review Meta AnalysisNebulized and oral thiol derivatives for pulmonary disease in cystic fibrosis.
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited condition resulting in thickened, sticky respiratory secretions. Respiratory failure, due to recurrent pulmonary infection and inflammation, is the most common cause of mortality. Muco-active therapies (e.g. dornase alfa and nebulized hypertonic saline) may decrease sputum viscosity, increase airway clearance of sputum, reduce infection and inflammation and improve lung function. Thiol derivatives, either oral or nebulized, have shown benefit in other respiratory diseases. Their mode of action is likely to differ according to the route of administration. There are several thiol derivatives, and it is unclear which of these may be beneficial in cystic fibrosis. ⋯ We found no evidence to recommend the use of either nebulized or oral thiol derivatives in people with cystic fibrosis. There are very few good quality trials investigating the effect of these medications in cystic fibrosis, and further research is required to investigate the potential role of these medications in improving the outcomes of people with cystic fibrosis.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2013
Review Meta AnalysisFluoride varnishes for preventing dental caries in children and adolescents.
Topically-applied fluoride varnishes have been used extensively as an operator-applied caries-preventive intervention for over three decades. This review updates the first Cochrane review of fluoride varnishes for preventing dental caries in children and adolescents, which was first published in 2002. ⋯ The conclusions of this updated review remain the same as those when it was first published. The review suggests a substantial caries-inhibiting effect of fluoride varnish in both permanent and primary teeth, however the quality of the evidence was assessed as moderate, as it included mainly high risk of bias studies, with considerable heterogeneity.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2013
Review Meta AnalysisEffect of timing of umbilical cord clamping of term infants on maternal and neonatal outcomes.
Policies for timing of cord clamping vary, with early cord clamping generally carried out in the first 60 seconds after birth, whereas later cord clamping usually involves clamping the umbilical cord more than one minute after the birth or when cord pulsation has ceased. The benefits and potential harms of each policy are debated. ⋯ A more liberal approach to delaying clamping of the umbilical cord in healthy term infants appears to be warranted, particularly in light of growing evidence that delayed cord clamping increases early haemoglobin concentrations and iron stores in infants. Delayed cord clamping is likely to be beneficial as long as access to treatment for jaundice requiring phototherapy is available.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2013
Review Meta AnalysisIntravenous versus inhalation anaesthesia for one-lung ventilation.
This is an update of a Cochrane Review first published in The Cochrane Library, Issue 2, 2008.The technique called one-lung ventilation can confine bleeding or infection to one lung, prevent rupture of a lung cyst or, more commonly, facilitate surgical exposure of the unventilated lung. During one-lung ventilation, anaesthesia is maintained either by delivering an inhalation anaesthetic to the ventilated lung or by infusing an intravenous anaesthetic. It is possible that the method chosen to maintain anaesthesia may affect patient outcomes. Inhalation anaesthetics may impair hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) and increase intrapulmonary shunt and hypoxaemia. ⋯ Very little evidence from randomized controlled trials suggests differences in participant outcomes with anaesthesia maintained by intravenous versus inhalational anaesthesia during one-lung ventilation. If researchers believe that the type of drug used to maintain anaesthesia during one-lung ventilation is important, they should design randomized controlled trials with appropriate participant outcomes, rather than report temporary fluctuations in physiological variables.