Cochrane Db Syst Rev
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2004
Review Meta AnalysisTypes of urethral catheters for management of short-term voiding problems in hospitalised adults.
Urinary tract infection is the most common hospital acquired infection. The major associated cause is indwelling urinary catheters. Currently there are many types of catheters available. A variety of specialised urethral catheters have been designed to reduce the risk of infection. These include antiseptic impregnated catheters and antibiotic impregnated catheters. Other issues that should be considered when choosing a catheter are ease of use, comfort and the cost. ⋯ The results suggest that the use of silver alloy indwelling catheters for catheterising hospitalised adults short-term reduces the risk of catheter acquired urinary tract infection. Further economic evaluation is required to confirm that the reduction of infection compensates for the increased cost of silver alloy catheters.Catheters coated with a combination of minocycline and rifampin may also be beneficial in reducing bacteriuria in hospitalised men catheterised less than one week but this requires further testing. There was not enough evidence to suggest whether or not any standard catheter was better than another in terms of reducing the risk of urinary tract infection in hospitalised adults catheterised short-term. Siliconised catheters may be less likely to cause urethral side effects in men: however, this result should be interpreted with some caution as the trials were small and the outcome definitions and specific catheters compared varied.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2004
Review Meta AnalysisSingle dose oral naproxen and naproxen sodium for acute postoperative pain.
Postoperative pain is often poorly managed. Treatment options include a range of drug therapies such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) of which naproxen is one. Naproxen is used to treat a variety of painful conditions including acute postoperative pain, and is often combined with sodium to improve its solubility for oral administration. Naproxen sodium 550 mg (equivalent to 500 mg of naproxen) is considered to be an effective dose for treating postoperative pain but to date no systematic review of the effectiveness of naproxen/naproxen sodium at different doses has been published. ⋯ Naproxen sodium 550 mg, naproxen 400 mg and naproxen sodium 440 mg administered orally are effective analgesics for the treatment of acute postoperative pain in adults. A low incidence of adverse events was found but reporting was not consistent.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2004
Review Meta AnalysisChinese herbal medicines for type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Traditional Chinese herbal medicines have been used for a long time to treat diabetes, and many controlled trials have been done to investigate their efficacy. ⋯ Some herbal medicines show hypoglycaemic effects in type 2 diabetes. However, these findings should be carefully interpreted due to the low methodological quality, small sample size, and limited number of trials. In the light of some positive findings, some herbal medicines deserve further examination in high-quality trials.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2004
Review Meta AnalysisCorticosteroid therapy for nephrotic syndrome in children.
In nephrotic syndrome protein leaks from the blood to the urine through the glomeruli resulting in hypoproteinaemia and generalised oedema. Children with untreated nephrotic syndrome frequently die from infections. The majority of children with nephrotic syndrome respond to corticosteroids. However about 70% of children experience a relapsing course with recurrent episodes of oedema and proteinuria. Corticosteroid usage has reduced the mortality rate in childhood nephrotic syndrome to around 3%, with infection remaining the most important cause of death. However corticosteroids have known adverse effects such as obesity, poor growth, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis and adrenal suppression. The original treatment schedules for childhood nephrotic syndrome were developed in an ad hoc manner. The optimal doses and durations of corticosteroid therapy that are most beneficial and least harmful have not been clarified. ⋯ Children in their first episode of SSNS should be treated for at least three months with an increase in benefit being demonstrated for up to seven months of treatment. In a population with a baseline risk for relapse following the first episode of 60% with two months of prednisone, daily prednisone for four weeks followed by alternate day therapy for six months would be expected to reduce the number of children experiencing a relapse by about 33%. In children who relapse frequently, deflazacort deserves further study.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jan 2004
ReviewSpecialist outreach clinics in primary care and rural hospital settings.
Specialist medical practitioners have conducted clinics in primary care and rural hospital settings for a variety of reasons in many different countries. Such clinics have been regarded as an important policy option for increasing the accessibility and effectiveness of specialist services and their integration with primary care services. ⋯ This review supports the hypothesis that specialist outreach can improve access, outcomes and service use, especially when delivered as part of a multifaceted intervention. The benefits of simple outreach models in urban non-disadvantaged settings seem small. There is a need for good comparative studies of outreach in rural and disadvantaged settings where outreach may confer most benefit to access and health outcomes.