Bridging boolean and quantitative synthesis using smoothed proof search

Background: During the last trimester of pregnancy, about 80% of the infant’s calcium is incorporated, and for this reason, preterm infants have less bone mineralization compared to those born at term. The aim of the present systematic review was to identify, evaluate and summarize the studies that deal with the effect of physiotherapy modalities in the prevention and treatment of osteopenia in preterm infants. Methods: A comprehensive search (09/2019–02/2021) using PubMed, Web of Science, SCOPUS, ProQuest, SciELO, Latindex, ScienceDirect, PEDro and ClinicalTrials.gov was carried out. The following data were extracted: The number of participants, characteristics of the participants, design, characteristics of the intervention, outcome measures, time of evaluation and results. A non-quantitative synthesis of the extracted data was performed. The methodological quality and risk of bias were assessed using a PEDro scale and ROB-2 scale, respectively. Results: A total of 16 studies were analyzed, presenting a methodological quality that ranged from 3 to 8 points, and all showed some concerns regarding their risk of bias. Almost all studies (15/16) used passive mobilizations with joint pressure to prevent osteopenia, but they differed in the intensity and frequency of application. Conclusions: A daily exercise program of passive mobilizations with joint pressure, improves bone mineralization in preterm infants admitted to neonatal units.

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Seizures in autoimmune encephalitis—A systematic review and quantitative synthesis

Epilepsia ◽

10.1111/epi.16807 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 62 (2) ◽

pp. 397-407

Author(s):

Anusha K. Yeshokumar ◽

Arielle Coughlin ◽

Jarrett Fastman ◽

Kendall Psaila ◽

Michael Harmon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Autoimmune Encephalitis ◽

Quantitative Synthesis

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Digital Interventions for Psychological Comorbidities in Chronic Diseases—A Systematic Review

Journal of Personalized Medicine ◽

10.3390/jpm11010030 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 30

Author(s):

Marta Maisto ◽

Barbara Diana ◽

Sonia Di Tella ◽

Marta Matamala-Gomez ◽

Jessica Isbely Montana ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Chronic Diseases ◽

Chronic Obstructive ◽

Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽

Design Elements ◽

Digital Interventions ◽

Digital Contents ◽

Psychological Comorbidities ◽

Quantitative Synthesis ◽

Meta Analyses

Chronic diseases represent one of the main causes of death worldwide. The integration of digital solutions in clinical interventions is broadly diffused today; however, evidence on their efficacy in addressing psychological comorbidities of chronic diseases is sparse. This systematic review analyzes and synthesizes the evidence about the efficacy of digital interventions on psychological comorbidities outcomes of specific chronic diseases. According to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a systematic search of PubMed, PsycInfo, Scopus and Web of Science databases was conducted. Only Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) were considered and either depression or anxiety had to be assessed to match the selection criteria. Of the 7636 identified records, 17 matched the inclusion criteria: 9 digital interventions on diabetes, 4 on cardiovascular diseases, 3 on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and one on stroke. Of the 17 studies reviewed, 14 found digital interventions to be effective. Quantitative synthesis highlighted a moderate and significant overall effect of interventions on depression, while the effect on anxiety was small and non-significant. Design elements making digital interventions effective for psychological comorbidities of chronic diseases were singled out: (a) implementing a communication loop with patients and (b) providing disease-specific digital contents. This focus on “how” to design technologies can facilitate the translation of evidence into practice.

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Near quantitative synthesis of urea macrocycles enabled by bulky N-substituent

Nature Communications ◽

10.1038/s41467-021-21678-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yingfeng Yang ◽

Hanze Ying ◽

Zhixia Li ◽

Jiang Wang ◽

Yingying Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

High Efficiency ◽

Molecular Structures ◽

High Yield ◽

Kinetic Control ◽

High Concentration ◽

Weak Association ◽

Quantitative Synthesis ◽

Thermodynamic Stabilization ◽

Discrete Structures ◽

Very High

AbstractMacrocycles are unique molecular structures extensively used in the design of catalysts, therapeutics and supramolecular assemblies. Among all reactions reported to date, systems that can produce macrocycles in high yield under high reaction concentrations are rare. Here we report the use of dynamic hindered urea bond (HUB) for the construction of urea macrocycles with very high efficiency. Mixing of equal molar diisocyanate and hindered diamine leads to formation of macrocycles with discrete structures in nearly quantitative yields under high concentration of reactants. The bulky N-tert-butyl plays key roles to facilitate the formation of macrocycles, providing not only the kinetic control due to the formation of the cyclization-promoting cis C = O/tert-butyl conformation, but also possibly the thermodynamic stabilization of macrocycles with weak association interactions. The bulky N-tert-butyl can be readily removed by acid to eliminate the dynamicity of HUB and stabilize the macrocycle structures.

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Effect modification of the association between comorbidities and severe course of COVID-19 disease by age of study participants: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Systematic Reviews ◽

10.1186/s13643-021-01732-3 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Nathalie Verónica Fernández Villalobos ◽

Jördis Jennifer Ott ◽

Carolina Judith Klett-Tammen ◽

Annabelle Bockey ◽

Patrizio Vanella ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Evidence Synthesis ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Icu Admission ◽

Vaccination Strategies ◽

Relative Risks ◽

Quantitative Synthesis ◽

Meta Regression ◽

Behavioural Factors ◽

Study Participants

Abstract Background Comprehensive evidence synthesis on the associations between comorbidities and behavioural factors with hospitalisation, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and death due to COVID-19 is required for deriving national and international recommendations on primary targets for non-pharmacological interventions (NPI) and vaccination strategies. Methods We performed a rapid systematic review and meta-analysis on studies and publicly accessible data to quantify associations between predisposing health conditions, demographics, behavioural factors on the one hand and hospitalisation, ICU admission, and death from COVID-19 on the other hand. We provide ranges of reported and calculated effect estimates and pooled relative risks derived from a meta-analysis and meta-regression. Results Seventy-five studies were included in qualitative and 74 in quantitative synthesis, with study populations ranging from 19 to 44,672 COVID-19 cases. The risk of dying from COVID-19 was significantly associated with cerebrovascular [pooled relative risk (RR) 2.7 (95% CI 1.7–4.1)] and cardiovascular [RR 3.2 (CI 2.3–4.5)] diseases, hypertension [RR 2.6 (CI 2.0–3.4)], and renal disease [RR 2.5 (CI 1.8–3.4)], with high heterogeneity in pooled estimates, partly but not solely explained by age of study participants. For some comorbidities, our meta-regression showed a decrease in effect on the severity of disease with a higher median age of the study population. Compared to death, associations between several comorbidities and hospitalisation and ICU admission were less pronounced. Conclusions We obtained robust estimates on the magnitude of risk for COVID-19 hospitalisation, ICU admission, and death associated with comorbidities, demographic, and behavioural risk factors and show that these estimates are modified by age of study participants. This interaction is an important finding to be kept in mind for current vaccination strategies and for the protection of individuals with high risk for a severe COVID-19 course.

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