Systematic review literature searches must be comprehensive and reproducible if their conclusions are to drive the research agenda and clinical practice changes

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard James
2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 436-442
Author(s):  
Zalan Piski ◽  
Imre Gerlinger ◽  
Nelli Nepp ◽  
Kornelia Farkas ◽  
Rainer Weber

Background Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) plays key role in immunologic process. Patients receiving anti-TNFα therapy may likely be more predisposed to infections including sinus disorders. Objectives Our aims were to review literature and evaluate data regarding TNFα antagonist therapy and its association with reference to various sinus disorders in the form of a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods Different keyword combinations were used in the screening of the literature including leading scientific databases (PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science). Papers reporting sinus disorders as supposed adverse events of the treatment were included into the meta-analysis. Results A thorough review of literature searches extracted 1154 records and 8 articles were found through other sources. Seventeen papers fulfilled our criteria for inclusion into the meta-analysis. Among 16 174 observed patients, 3018 suffered from a sinus infection. An event rate (ER) of 0.058 was calculated for all the cases. Analysis with regard to the confirmed diseases showed an 0.038 ER. Calculations were performed in accordance to the diagnostic categories used for sinus disorder. Six groups were found including the following: “Bacterial Sinusitis” (ER: 0.046), “Chronic Rhinosinusitis” (ER: 0.027), “Sinusitis Requiring Prescription Medication” (ER: 0.295), “Recurrent Sinusitis” (ER: 0.070), “Sinusitis” (ER: 0.076), “Acute Rhinosinusitis” (ER: 0.002) and, lastly, “Maxillary Sinusitis” (ER: 0.028). Conclusions Our results exhibited a similar prevalence to the healthy population; therefore, infective sinus disorders cannot directly be considered as complications of TNFα antagonist therapy.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 40-45
Author(s):  
Sayu Aryantari Putri Thanaya ◽  
Putu Eka Mardhika

Background: Neurocritical patients commonly present with increased intracranial pressure and are regularly treated with physiotherapy through exercise early after admission to the intensive care unit. However, the effect of exercise on intracranial pressure is minimally investigated, and there appears to be no systematic reviews or meta-analyses addressing this topic in the published literature. This study aimed to determine the effect of exercise on the intracranial pressure of neurocritical patients. Methods: Through a systematic review, literature searches on PubMed, PEDro, and CENTRAL were conducted in January 2020. The keywords used were: “physical therapy”, “physiotherapy”, “exercise”, “range of motion”, “intracranial pressure”, and “ICP”, combined using Boolean operators “OR” and “AND”. Only studies published in the English and Indonesian language were considered. Results: A total of five studies involving 193 patients (mean age 41-56 years old) were included in this review. Most included studies reported that intracranial pressure did not change significantly after passive range of motion exercise, and some studies found that intracranial pressure actually decreased significantly during and after passive range of motion and active exercise. An additional finding was that isometric exercise significantly increased mean intracranial pressure in patients with normal intracranial pressure. All studies reported that exercise could be used safely in patients. Conclusion: Exercise, in particular passive range of motion, does not increase the intracranial pressure of neurocritical patients and does not lead to any adverse effects, as long as isometric or Valsalva-like maneuvers are avoided.


Author(s):  
Anastasia M. Raymer ◽  
Beth McHose ◽  
Kimberly Graham

Purpose: Luria (1970) proposed the use of intersystemic reorganization to use an intact system to facilitate improvements in a damaged cognitive system. In this article, we review literature examining the effects of gesture as a modality to promote reorganization to improve verbal production in apraxia of speech and anomia. Methods: A gestural facilitation training paradigm is described and results of a recent systematic review of apraxia of speech treatment are reviewed. The interplay between apraxia of speech and anomia are considered in response to gestural facilitation training. Results & Conclusions: Gestural facilitation effects are strongest in individuals with moderate apraxia of speech. Several factors appear to mitigate the effects of gestural facilitation for verbal production, including severe apraxia of speech and semantic anomia. Severe limb apraxia, which often accompanies severe apraxia of speech, appears to be amenable to gestural treatment, providing improvements in gesture use for communication when verbal production gains are not evident.


2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (suppl 1) ◽  
pp. bjgp18X697085
Author(s):  
Trudy Bekkering ◽  
Bert Aertgeerts ◽  
Ton Kuijpers ◽  
Mieke Vermandere ◽  
Jako Burgers ◽  
...  

BackgroundThe WikiRecs evidence summaries and recommendations for clinical practice are developed using trustworthy methods. The process is triggered by studies that may potentially change practice, aiming at implementing new evidence into practice fast.AimTo share our first experiences developing WikiRecs for primary care and to reflect on the possibilities and pitfalls of this method.MethodIn March 2017, we started developing WikiRecs for primary health care to speed up the process of making potentially practice-changing evidence in clinical practice. Based on a well-structured question a systematic review team summarises the evidence using the GRADE approach. Subsequently, an international panel of primary care physicians, methodological experts and patients formulates recommendations for clinical practice. The patient representatives are involved as full guideline panel members. The final recommendations and supporting evidence are disseminated using various platforms, including MAGICapp and scientific journals.ResultsWe are developing WikiRecs on two topics: alpha-blockers for urinary stones and supervised exercise therapy for intermittent claudication. We did not face major problems but will reflect on issues we had to solve so far. We anticipate having the first WikiRecs for primary care available at the end of 2017.ConclusionThe WikiRecs process is a promising method — that is still evolving — to rapidly synthesise and bring new evidence into primary care practice, while adhering to high quality standards.


2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jobin Thomas ◽  
Ana Balseiro ◽  
Christian Gortázar ◽  
María A. Risalde

AbstractAnimal tuberculosis (TB) is a multi-host disease caused by members of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTC). Due to its impact on economy, sanitary standards of milk and meat industry, public health and conservation, TB control is an actively ongoing research subject. Several wildlife species are involved in the maintenance and transmission of TB, so that new approaches to wildlife TB diagnosis have gained relevance in recent years. Diagnosis is a paramount step for screening, epidemiological investigation, as well as for ensuring the success of control strategies such as vaccination trials. This is the first review that systematically addresses data available for the diagnosis of TB in wildlife following the Preferred Reporting Items of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The article also gives an overview of the factors related to host, environment, sampling, and diagnostic techniques which can affect test performance. After three screenings, 124 articles were considered for systematic review. Literature indicates that post-mortem examination and culture are useful methods for disease surveillance, but immunological diagnostic tests based on cellular and humoral immune response detection are gaining importance in wildlife TB diagnosis. Among them, serological tests are especially useful in wildlife because they are relatively inexpensive and easy to perform, facilitate large-scale surveillance and can be used both ante- and post-mortem. Currently available studies assessed test performance mostly in cervids, European badgers, wild suids and wild bovids. Research to improve diagnostic tests for wildlife TB diagnosis is still needed in order to reach accurate, rapid and cost-effective diagnostic techniques adequate to a broad range of target species and consistent over space and time to allow proper disease monitoring.


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