Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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The explicit use of theory in research helps expand the knowledge base. Theories and models have been used extensively in HIV-prevention research and in interventions for preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The health behavior field uses many theories or models of change. However, many educational interventions addressing contraception have no explicit theoretical base. ⋯ The overall quality of evidence was moderate. Trials based on social cognitive theory focused on adolescents and provided multiple sessions. Those using motivational interviewing had a wider age range but specific populations. Sites with low resources need effective interventions adapted for their settings and their typical clients. Reports could be clearer about how the theory was used to design and implement the intervention.
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Tinnitus is the perception of sound without external acoustic stimuli. Patients with severe tinnitus may have physical and psychological complaints and their tinnitus can cause deterioration in their quality of life. At present no specific therapy for tinnitus has been found to be satisfactory in all patients. In recent decades, a number of reports have suggested that oral zinc supplementation may be effective in the management of tinnitus. Since zinc has a role in cochlear physiology and in the synapses of the auditory system, there is a plausible mechanism of action for this treatment. ⋯ We found no evidence that the use of oral zinc supplementation improves symptoms in adults with tinnitus.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Nov 2016
Review Meta AnalysisAdjuvant platinum-based chemotherapy for early stage cervical cancer.
This is the second updated version of the original Cochrane review published in the Cochrane Library 2009, Issue 3. Most women with early cervical cancer (stages I to IIA) are cured with surgery or radiotherapy, or both. We performed this review originally because it was unclear whether cisplatin-based chemotherapy after surgery, radiotherapy or both, in women with early stage disease with risk factors for recurrence, was associated with additional survival benefits or risks. ⋯ The addition of platinum-based chemotherapy to adjuvant radiotherapy (chemoradiation) may improve survival in women with early stage cervical cancer (IA2-IIA) and risk factors for recurrence. Adjuvant chemoradiation is associated with an increased risk of severe acute toxicity, although it is not clear whether this toxicity is significant in the long term due to a lack of long-term data. This evidence is limited by the small numbers and low to moderate methodological quality of the included studies. We await the results of three ongoing trials, which are likely to have an important impact on our confidence in this evidence.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Nov 2016
Review Meta AnalysisIntravenous nutrients for preventing inadvertent perioperative hypothermia in adults.
Inadvertent perioperative hypothermia (a drop in core temperature to below 36°C) occurs because normal temperature regulation is disrupted during surgery, mainly because of the effects of anaesthetic drugs and exposure of the skin for prolonged periods. Many different ways of maintaining body temperature have been proposed, one of which involves administration of intravenous nutrients during the perioperative period that may reduce heat loss by increasing metabolism, thereby increasing heat production. ⋯ Intravenous amino acids may keep participants up to a half-degree C warmer than the control. This difference was statistically significant at the end of surgery, but not at other time points. However, the clinical importance of this finding remains unclear. It is also unclear whether amino acids have any effect on the risk of shivering and if intravenous nutrients confer any other benefits or harms, as high-quality data about these outcomes are lacking.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Nov 2016
Review Meta AnalysisNon-medical prescribing versus medical prescribing for acute and chronic disease management in primary and secondary care.
A range of health workforce strategies are needed to address health service demands in low-, middle- and high-income countries. Non-medical prescribing involves nurses, pharmacists, allied health professionals, and physician assistants substituting for doctors in a prescribing role, and this is one approach to improve access to medicines. ⋯ The findings suggest that non-medical prescribers, practising with varying but high levels of prescribing autonomy, in a range of settings, were as effective as usual care medical prescribers. Non-medical prescribers can deliver comparable outcomes for systolic blood pressure, glycated haemoglobin, low-density lipoprotein, medication adherence, patient satisfaction, and health-related quality of life. It was difficult to determine the impact of non-medical prescribing compared to medical prescribing for adverse events and resource use outcomes due to the inconsistency and variability in reporting across studies. Future efforts should be directed towards more rigorous studies that can clearly identify the clinical, patient-reported, resource use, and economic outcomes of non-medical prescribing, in both high-income and low-income countries.