A systematic review of computer-based patient record systems and quality of care: more randomized clinical trials or a broader approach?

Background: In recent years, several reviews have addressed the effectiveness of dance therapy in dementia, healthy older adults, or the elderly in general. However, reviews regarding the effect of this therapy exclusively on patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease have not been found. Objective: The purpose of this study is to review the available literature describing clinical trials which explore the effects of dancing on psychological and physical outcomes, functionality, cognitive function, and quality of life in patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, this review aims to assess the quality of studies that perform dance therapy interventions in these patients. Methods: This study is a systematic review of randomized and non-randomized clinical trials regarding the effect of intervention including a dancing activity in people diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Results: In total, the evidence for this review rests on 12 studies with a total of 349 participants. The findings of this mini-review confirm the positive effect of dance therapy on physical and cognitive function, functionality, psychological outcomes, and quality of life in people with Alzheimer's disease. Conclusion: Most of the studies implementing dance as part of the therapeutic treatment has shown to improve or slow the worsening in the quality of life of patients with Alzheimer's disease and their caregivers. Future research focused on these patients should use a more exhaustive methodology and make a more detailed description of these kind of interventions.

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Mental health quality of life after bariatric surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Clinical Obesity ◽

10.1111/cob.12290 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. e12290 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Alejandro Szmulewicz ◽

Kerollos N. Wanis ◽

Ashley Gripper ◽

Federico Angriman ◽

Jeff Hawel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Mental Health ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Bariatric Surgery ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Health Quality ◽

Health Quality Of Life

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Omalizumab for the treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria: a systematic review

International Journal of Research in Dermatology ◽

10.18203/issn.2455-4529.intjresdermatol20214213 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (6) ◽

pp. 852

Author(s):

Nishitha Gopal Rao ◽

Hai Xia Jing ◽

Ahmed Raihan Kabir ◽

Rohit Surthi

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Clinical Symptoms ◽

Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria ◽

Double Blind ◽

H1 Antihistamines ◽

Online Library ◽

Dose Dependent

<p class="abstract">Chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) is a mast cell-driven skin disease characterized by the recurrence of transient wheals, angioedema or both lasting for more than 6 weeks duration. Omalizumab is a newer humanized anti IgE immunoglobulin along with many new antibody treatments has shown beneficial effect in treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria. Although many randomized clinical trials have been conducted, as of now, the effectiveness of omalizumab in the real world management of CSU is largely unknown. A systematic review of all studies should be done. The objective was to study the efficacy and safety of different doses of omalizumab in the treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria which was refractory to treatment with H1 antihistamines. Suitable studies were recognized after searching Wiley online library, PubMed, Google scholar, NEJM/NEJ dermatology, JAAD, JACI, clinicaltrials.gov. Only randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials with omalizumab versus antihistamine or leukotriene antagonists as placebo were involved in this study. 10 randomized, placebo-controlled studies were involved with 1692 patients with CSU. Patients treated with omalizumab (75-600 mg every 4 weeks) had reduced UAS7 score, improved QoL (quality of life), reduced WISS, when compared to the placebo group. The effects of omalizumab were found to be dose dependent, with maximum reduction in UAS7 at a dose of 300 mg when given at an interval of 4 weeks’ duration. The incidences of adverse events were almost similar in both control and placebo groups and across various dose ranges. The best effect in reduction of clinical symptoms and QoL in CSU patients was found at a dose of 300 mg subcutaneous injection once a month of omalizumab for 12 to 24 weeks. Omalizumab was found to reduce the clinical symptoms and signs in patients with CSU who were symptomatic despite treatment with upscaling dose of H1 antihistamines.</p>

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Efficacy of acupuncture in the management of fatigue related to breast cancer antineoplastic treatment: a systematic review

Revista Pesquisa em Fisioterapia ◽

10.17267/2238-2704rpf.v9i2.2248 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 264-272

Author(s):

Ana Carolina Moraes Costa ◽

Alena Peixoto Medrado

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Scientific Evidence ◽

Total Sample ◽

Inclusion Criteria ◽

Antineoplastic Treatment

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women worldwide. Similar to chemotherapy, antineoplastic treatment is associated with many side effects, with fatigue being one of the most common. It is important to investigate potential treatments, especially non-pharmacological alternatives, to control symptoms that directly affect women’s quality of life. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to provide scientific evidence to verify the efficacy of acupuncture in the management of fatigue in patients with breast cancer. METHODS: This study involved a systematic review based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) methodology. Randomized clinical trials published in indexed scientific journals were compiled. The literature search was performed using the electronic databases, PubMed, PEDro, and BIREME, using the descriptors ‘breast cancer’, ‘fatigue’, ‘acupuncture’, and ‘randomized trial’. Inclusion criteria included fully available online articles that were classified as randomised clinical trials published from 2012 to 2017 in either English or Portuguese. Study eligibility was based on the Population, Intervention, Control, Outcome, and Study (PICO) design criteria, in which the (1) population included women 18–65 years of age with breast cancer, (2) intervention was acupuncture, (3) comparison referred to standard care or sham acupuncture, and (4) outcome was the evaluation of fatigue. The PEDro scale was applied to evaluate the quality of the studies. WebQualis was also used to evaluate the quality of the journals of the selected articles. RESULTS: In total, 66 articles were selected, but only four fulfilled all inclusion criteria, giving a total sample size of 620 women. All trials evaluated the effect of acupuncture on fatigue and other symptoms related to the treatment of breast cancer with different treatment durations. Three articles reported statistically significant results, and all articles described clinical improvement in fatigue after the application of acupuncture. The average PEDro score of the manuscripts was 6.25. All articles were published in non-Brazilian journals with WebQualis scores that ranged from B2 to A1. CONCLUSION: Scientific evidence confirms the efficacy of acupuncture in the management of fatigue reported by women with breast cancer. Acupuncture was effective in reducing fatigue in the studies selected for this review.

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Chinese Herbal Medicines Compared with N-Acetylcysteine for the Treatment of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine ◽

10.1155/2019/5170638 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2019 ◽

pp. 1-18

Author(s):

Jing Guo ◽

Bin Li ◽

Wenbin Wu ◽

Zhichao Wang ◽

Fei Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis ◽

Pulmonary Fibrosis ◽

Methodological Quality ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Conventional Medicine ◽

Herbal Medicines ◽

Chinese Herbal

Background. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a major global health problem. The prevalence of the disease appears to be increasing. There is no curative therapy for IPF except lung transplantation. Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) are showing promise for treatment of IPF. However, their effectiveness and safety are still unclear and deserve further investigation. The aim of this systematic review is to access the efficacy and safety of CHMs in treating IPF. Methods. The protocol of this review is registered at PROSPERO. We searched seven main databases for randomized clinical trials (RCTs) on CHMs for IPF from their inception to June 4, 2018. The methodological quality of RCTs was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. All trials included were analyzed according to the criteria of the Cochrane Handbook. Review Manager 5.3, R-3.5.2 software, and Grade pro GDT web solution were used for data synthesis and analysis. Results. Thirteen randomized clinical trials enrolling 733 patients were included. All trials included had clear outcome indicators. The methodological quality of included trials was generally “poor.” Few trials reported methods of randomization. One trial on Xuefu-zhuyu capsule assessed rate of acute exacerbation and mortality after treatment for 72 weeks and found no statistically significant difference between two groups. This meta-analysis demonstrated a significant improvement in QOL of IPF patients when CHMs was applied or combined with conventional medicine treatment. 6MWT was significantly improved in IPF patients after using CHMs or combined with conventional medicine treatment. CHMs treatment also had a certain improvement in TLC and DLCO, but the effect on FVC was not significant. Besides, CHMs failed to provide benefits in terms of PaO2. The reported adverse events were not obvious and severe. Conclusions. Some CHMs seem effective and safe as alternative remedies for patients with IPF, suggesting that further study of CHMs in the treatment of IPF is warranted. Although this systematic review suggests that CHMs may have positive effect on quality of life, 6-minute walk test distance, and lung function (TLC, DLOC%) and seem to be relatively safe during the course of treatment, the results must be treated with great caution because of the methodological flaws of the included trials. Long-term and high-quality trials are needed in the future to provide clear evidence for the use of CHMs.

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Randomized Clinical Trials of Self-Management With Asian/Pacific Islanders

Clinical Nursing Research ◽

10.1177/1054773811417708 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 20 (4) ◽

pp. 366-403 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jillian Inouye ◽

Nafanua Braginsky ◽

Merle Kataoka-Yahiro

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Chronic Conditions ◽

Behavioral Interventions ◽

Randomized Clinical Trials ◽

Descriptive Analysis ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Pacific Islanders ◽

Self Management

Little has been reported in the literature about self-management strategies of chronic conditions in Asian and Pacific Islanders (APIs). The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of self-management strategies of chronic conditions in APIs. Twenty-one studies were included in the final review, published between 1997 and 2010. Initially, the Jadad Scoring of Quality of Reports of Randomized Clinical Trials (JSQRRC) was used to determine the quality of RCT studies. The researchers then did a systematic review of each of the RCTs based on the JSQRRC criteria. JSQRRC scores ranged from 8 to 12, M = 9.6. Descriptive analysis indicated cognitive behavioral interventions as an effective treatment methodology for APIs. The results underscore the importance of clarifying the methodological components and reporting of RCTs. Interventions appropriate for APIs using disaggregated ethnic groups are essential to determine specific cultural responses to treatments and outcomes.

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