Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jun 2017
Review Meta AnalysisKetamine as an adjuvant to opioids for cancer pain.
This is an update of a review first published in 2003 and updated in 2012.Ketamine is a commonly used anaesthetic agent, and in subanaesthetic doses is also given as an adjuvant to opioids for the treatment of refractory cancer pain, when opioids alone or in combination with appropriate adjuvant analgesics prove to be ineffective. Ketamine is known to have psychomimetic (including hallucinogenic), urological, and hepatic adverse effects. ⋯ Current evidence is insufficient to assess the benefits and harms of ketamine as an adjuvant to opioids for the relief of refractory cancer pain. The evidence was of very low quality, meaning that it does not provide a reliable indication of the likely effect, and the likelihood that the effect will be substantially different is high. Rapid dose escalation of ketamine to high dose (500 mg) does not appear to have clinical benefit and may be associated with serious adverse events. More randomised controlled trials (RCTs) examining specific low-dose ketamine clinical regimens in current use are needed.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jun 2017
Review Meta AnalysisPatient education in the management of coronary heart disease.
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the single most common cause of death globally. However, with falling CHD mortality rates, an increasing number of people live with CHD and may need support to manage their symptoms and improve prognosis. Cardiac rehabilitation is a complex multifaceted intervention which aims to improve the health outcomes of people with CHD. Cardiac rehabilitation consists of three core modalities: education, exercise training and psychological support. This is an update of a Cochrane systematic review previously published in 2011, which aims to investigate the specific impact of the educational component of cardiac rehabilitation. ⋯ We found no reduction in total mortality, in people who received education delivered as part of cardiac rehabilitation, compared to people in control groups (moderate quality evidence). There were no improvements in fatal or non fatal MI, total revascularisations or hospitalisations, with education. There was some evidence of a reduction in fatal and/or non-fatal cardiovascular events with education, but this was based on only two studies. There was also some evidence to suggest that education-based interventions may improve HRQoL. Our findings are supportive of current national and international clinical guidelines that cardiac rehabilitation for people with CHD should be comprehensive and include educational interventions together with exercise and psychological therapy. Further definitive research into education interventions for people with CHD is needed.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jun 2017
Review Meta AnalysisPhototherapy for treating foot ulcers in people with diabetes.
Foot ulcers are a disabling complication of diabetes that affect 15% to 25% of people with diabetes at some time in their lives. Phototherapy is a relatively new, non-invasive, and pain-free treatment method, which promotes the ulcer repair process through multiple mechanisms such as increased cell growth and vascular activity. Phototherapy may be used as an alternative approach for the treatment of foot ulcers in people with diabetes, but the evidence for its effect compared with placebo or other treatments has not yet been established. ⋯ This systematic review of randomised trials suggested that phototherapy, when compared to no phototherapy/placebo, may increase the proportion of wounds completely healed during follow-up and may reduce wound size in people with diabetes, but there was no evidence that phototherapy improves quality of life. Due to the small sample size and methodological flaws in the original trials, the quality of the evidence was low, which reduces our confidence in these results. Large, well-designed randomised controlled trials are needed to confirm whether phototherapy could be an effective option for the treatment of foot ulcers in people with diabetes.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jun 2017
Review Meta AnalysisAntibiotics for neonates born through meconium-stained amniotic fluid.
Approximately 1 in 10 pregnancies is affected by meconium passage at delivery, which can result in meconium aspiration syndrome (MAS). MAS can cause respiratory complications and, very rarely, death. Antibiotics have been prescribed for neonates exposed to meconium in amniotic fluid, with the intention of preventing infection due to potential bacterial contaminants. ⋯ Upon review of available evidence, we found no differences in infection rates following antibiotic treatment among neonates born through meconium-stained fluid and those with meconium aspiration syndrome. The overall quality of evidence is low owing to the small number of included studies. Well-controlled studies of adequate power are needed.
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Many people with schizophrenia do not achieve a satisfactory treatment response with their initial antipsychotic drug treatment. Sometimes a second antipsychotic, in combination with the first, is used in these situations. ⋯ Currently, most evidence regarding the use of antipsychotic combinations comes from short-term trials, limiting the assessment of long-term efficacy and safety. We found very low-quality evidence that a combination of antipsychotics may improve the clinical response. We also found low-quality evidence that a combination of antipsychotics is may make no difference at preventing participants from leaving the study early, preventing relapse and/or causing more serious adverse events than monotherapy.