Systematic review: the role of the gut microbiota in chemotherapy- or radiation-induced gastrointestinal mucositis - current evidence and potential clinical applications

Abstract Purpose The outbreak of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is a public health emergency of international concern. Telehealth is effective option to fight COVID-19 outbreak. The aim of this systematic review was to identify the role of telehealth services during COVID-19 outbreak.Methods This systematic review was conducted through searching five databases including PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science and Science direct. Inclusion criteria included studies clearly defined role of telehealth services in COVID-19 outbreak, published from December 31, 2019, written in English language and published in peer reviewed. Two reviewers independently assessed search results, extracted data, and assessed quality of included studies. Quality assessment was based on the Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP) checklist. Narrative synthesis was undertaken to summarize and report the findings.Results Eight studies met the inclusion out of the 142 search results. Currently, healthcare providers and patients who are self-isolating, telehealth is certainly appropriate to minimizing the risk of COVID-19 transmission. This solution has the potential to avoidance of direct physical contact, provide continuous care to the community and finally reduce morbidity and mortality in COVID-19 outbreak.Conclusions The use of telehealth improves the provision of health services. Therefore, telehealth should be an important tool in caring services while keeping patients and health providers safe as the COVID-19 outbreak.

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The Effect of Anakinra in Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10194462 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (19) ◽

pp. 4462

Author(s):

Konstantinos G. Kyriakoulis ◽

Anastasios Kollias ◽

Garyphallia Poulakou ◽

Ioannis G. Kyriakoulis ◽

Ioannis P. Trontzas ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Interleukin 1 ◽

Severe Pneumonia ◽

Hospitalized Patients ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Adjusted Risk ◽

Risk Of Death ◽

The Impact

The role of immunomodulatory agents in the treatment of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 has been of increasing interest. Anakinra, an interleukin-1 inhibitor, has been shown to offer significant clinical benefits in patients with COVID-19 and hyperinflammation. An updated systematic review and meta-analysis regarding the impact of anakinra on the outcomes of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 was conducted. Studies, randomized or non-randomized with adjustment for confounders, reporting on the adjusted risk of death in patients treated with anakinra versus those not treated with anakinra were deemed eligible. A search was performed in PubMed/EMBASE databases, as well as in relevant websites, until 1 August 2021. The meta-analysis of six studies that fulfilled the inclusion criteria (n = 1553 patients with moderate to severe pneumonia, weighted age 64 years, men 66%, treated with anakinra 50%, intubated 3%) showed a pooled hazard ratio for death in patients treated with anakinra at 0.47 (95% confidence intervals 0.34, 0.65). A meta-regression analysis did not reveal any significant associations between the mean age, percentage of males, mean baseline C-reactive protein levels, mean time of administration since symptoms onset among the included studies and the hazard ratios for death. All studies were considered as low risk of bias. The current evidence, although derived mainly from observational studies, supports a beneficial role of anakinra in the treatment of selected patients with COVID-19.

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The role of bioactive glass in the management of chronic osteomyelitis: a systematic review of literature and current evidence

Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1080/23744235.2019.1695059 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 52 (4) ◽

pp. 219-226 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Yashwant Singh Tanwar ◽

Nando Ferreira

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Bioactive Glass ◽

Chronic Osteomyelitis ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Review Of Literature

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Current evidence on the role of smoking in plastic surgery elective procedures: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Journal of Plastic Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery ◽

10.1016/j.bjps.2018.01.011 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 71 (5) ◽

pp. 624-636 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Vasileios Theocharidis ◽

Ioannis Katsaros ◽

Emmanouil Sgouromallis ◽

Nikolaos Serifis ◽

Vasileios Boikou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Plastic Surgery ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Current Evidence

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The Role of Nutrition in Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: A Systematic Review

Nutrition and Metabolic Insights ◽

10.1177/11786388211054664 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 ◽

pp. 117863882110546

Author(s):

Celine I Partha Sarathi ◽

Oliver D Mowforth ◽

Amil Sinha ◽

Faheem Bhatti ◽

Aniqah Bhatti ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Spinal Cord ◽

Cervical Myelopathy ◽

Surgical Outcome ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Hospital Readmissions ◽

Functional Improvement ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy

Introduction: Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is the commonest cause of adult spinal cord impairment worldwide, encompassing chronic compression of the spinal cord, neurological disability and diminished quality of life. Evidence on the contribution of environmental factors is sparse; in particular, the role of nutrition in DCM is unknown. The objective of this review was to assess the effect of nutrition on DCM susceptibility, severity and surgical outcome. Methods: A systematic review in MEDLINE and Embase was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Full-text papers in English papers, focussing on cervical myelopathy and nutrition, published before January 2020 were considered eligible. Quality assessments were performed using the GRADE assessment tool. Patient demographics, nutritional factor and DCM outcomes measures were recorded. Relationships between nutritional factors, interventions and disease prognosis were assessed. Results: In total, 5835 papers were identified of which 44 were included in the final analysis. DCM patients with pathological weight pre-operatively were more likely to see poorer improvements post-surgically. These patients experienced poorer physical and mental health improvements from surgery compared to normal weight patients and were more likely to suffer from post-operative complications such as infection, DVT, PE and hospital readmissions. Two trials reporting benefits of nutritional supplements were identified, with 1 suggesting Cerebrolysin to be significant in functional improvement. An unbalanced diet, history of alcohol abuse and malnourishment were associated with poorer post-operative outcome. Conclusion: Although the overall strength of recommendation is low, current evidence suggests nutrition may have a significant role in optimising surgical outcome in DCM patients. Although it may have a role in onset and severity of DCM, this is a preliminary suggestion. Further work needs to be done on how nutrition is defined and measured, however, the beneficial results from studies with nutritional interventions suggest nutrition could be a treatment target in DCM.

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Role of oral zinc supplementation for reduction of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia: a systematic review of current evidence

The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine ◽

10.1080/14767058.2016.1234600 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 30 (16) ◽

pp. 1953-1962 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Deepak Sharma ◽

Nazanin Farahbakhsh ◽

Pradeep Sharma ◽

Sweta Shastri

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Zinc Supplementation ◽

Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia ◽

Current Evidence

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Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials of Erythropoietin in Multiple Myeloma.

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood.v104.11.232.232 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 104 (11) ◽

pp. 232-232

Author(s):

Heloisa P. Soares ◽

Ambuj Kumar ◽

Franco Silvestris ◽

Benjamin Djulbegovic

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Multiple Myeloma ◽

Randomized Controlled Trials ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Epoetin Alpha

Abstract Background: The current approach for treating anemia in multiple myeloma (MM) patients entails prescribing recombinant erythropoetin (EPO) only if chemotherapy fails initially to raise hemoglobin (Hb) levels. However, this practice is not based on synthesis of the totality of evidence obtained from data of all trials testing EPO exclusively in myeloma patients. Objective: To conduct a systematic review/ meta-analysis (SR/MA) regarding the use of EPO in MM patients. Methods: We conducted a SR of all randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that studied the effect of EPO exclusively in MM patients. We searched all major electronic databases (MEDLINE, LILACS, EMBASE and the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register) as well as performing hand searches of relevant meeting proceedings (ASH, ASCO, EHA), and ongoing NCI trials. We included RCTs that had at least 10 patients in each arm and had compared the use of EPO against a control group. We also identified trials that compared different doses of EPO. We excluded trials that enrolled patients treated with high-dose myeloablative chemotherapy followed by stem cell transplantation or hemodialysis. Results: We identified more than 500 relevant studies; 6 trials met our eligibility criteria and were included in the analysis. Five trials (4 published as full text manuscripts and 1 as the abstract) compared epoetin alpha against a control [placebo (2 trials) or no therapy with or without specification of red cells transfusion trigger level (3 trials)] in anemic MM patients. One trial compared 2 different schedules of epoetin alpha. No trial tested the effect of darbopoeitin. All 5 trials that studied EPO against controls used initial doses of 150 IU 3x/week SC with the possibility of increasing to 300 IU if necessary. In the majority of trials the patients had been receiving chemotherapy at the time EPO was administered. The number of patients included in each trial ranged from 24 to 145. All trials concluded that EPO was superior to a placebo or no treatment in terms of Hb increase. Two trials also concluded that EPO improves quality of life. Our meta-analysis showed that hematological response was favored in the group receiving EPO [relative risk (RR) 7.75; 95% CI 4.19 to 14.35, 4 trials, n = 272]. Mean Hb level improvement with EPO was also significant [weighted mean difference (WMD) 2.29; 95% CI2.00 to -2.58, 3 trials, n = 235]. In terms of adverse events, hypertension was more often found in the EPO arm [RR 5.80; 95% CI 1.30-25.90, 4 trials, n = 290]. Survival and data related to tumor response were not available in all trials. Critical appraisal indicated that available evidence was modest in quantity (5 trials, n= 385 total patients enrolled) and poorly reported in all important methodological domains. Conclusion: Available body of evidence suggests that EPO improves hematological outcomes in patients with myeloma. However, the quality of current evidence is insufficient, data on most important patients’ outcomes are lacking (e.g. survival etc.), thus preventing us from making definitive recommendations regarding the role of EPO in managing anemia in the myeloma setting. A definitive RCT to resolve the role of EPO in myeloma is indicated.

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Evaluation of the association between exosomal levels and female reproductive system and fertility outcome during aging: a systematic review protocol

Systematic Reviews ◽

10.1186/s13643-019-1228-9 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Halimeh Mobarak ◽

Reza Rahbarghazi ◽

Francesca Lolicato ◽

Mohammad Heidarpour ◽

Fariba Pashazadeh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Reproductive System ◽

Reproductive Tract ◽

Physiological Role ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Gene Expressions ◽

Younger Women ◽

Age Related ◽

Maternal Aging

Abstract Background Exosomes may have critical roles in the maternal-embryo cross-talk for the recognition and maintenance of pregnancy during maternal aging. Exosomes have the capability to carry developmental signaling molecules with the ability to modulate gene expressions and affect growth and regulation of embryo during pregnancy. Systematic review aims to evaluate age-related alterations in the exosomal content and functions that can influence the reproductive performance in human and animal models as conveyors of senescence signals. Methods A literature search of electronic databases including MEDLINE (PubMed), Embase, ProQuest, Scopus, Google Scholar, WHO, SID, MAGIRAN, and Barakat will be conducted. Following the online search, articles will be screened by two independent reviewers according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Eligible studies will be critically appraised by reviewers at the study level for methodological quality using Joanna Briggs Institute’s standardized critical appraisal tools. The extracted data from selected studies will cover the study populations, methods, current evidence about the physiological role of extracellular vesicles and exosomes in reproductive system, relevant outcomes, and possible conclusions about the effectiveness of exposure. Discussion Regarding the role of exosomes and their cargoes in the function of reproductive tract, the possible beneficial or adverse effects following exosomal administration from younger women to older women will be evaluated in the systematic review. As a result, exosome therapy could be suggested as a novel therapeutic agent if the favorable results are identified.

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