How to update a living systematic review and keep it alive during a pandemic: a practical guide
ConclusionsMethods to improve the efficiency of searching, study selection, and data extraction using machine learning technologies are being developed, their performance and applicability, particularly for reviews based on observational study designs should improve, and ways of publishing living systematic reviews and their updates will continue to evolve. Finally, knowing when to end a living systematic review is as important as knowing when to start. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - September 2, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
A systematic review of the measures that have been used to assess surface characteristics in relation to their impact on walking and falling
AbstractWe investigated whether an impediment to progress in understanding the environmental factors that cause falls may be the difficulty in comparing results across studies because walking surfaces are poorly defined and underspecified. We conducted a systematic review of 384 studies from 370 articles that tested how different surfaces influenced human walking and falling. For each study, we report which categories of surfaces were used (indoor, outdoor, treadmill, virtual reality and qualitative), the nature of each surface (stairs, slopes, slippery, compliant, rough or default) and how information about each surface w...
Source: Systematic Reviews - September 2, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Ranking Research Methodology by Risk — a cross-sectional study to determine the opinion of research ethics committee members
ConclusionsWe discuss whether this hierarchy is useful for guiding RECs as to the level of scientific justification that they should seek when reviewing proposed research protocols, and present a one-page guidance sheet to help RECs during their reviews. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - September 1, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Terminology and methods used to differentiate injury intent of hospital burn patients in South Asia: a systematic scoping review protocol
The objectives of the study are to: determine the breadth of terminology and common terms used for burn injury intent; to determine if definitions are comparable across studies where the same term is used; and to appraise the rigour of methods used to differentiate burn injury intent and suitability for comparison across studies. The databases Embase, MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and PakMediNet will be searched. Screening and data extraction will be completed independently by two reviewers. To be included, the article must be as follows: peer reviewed, primary research, study cutaneous burns, based on hospital patients from ...
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 31, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Checklists for interpreting chest radiographs: a scoping review protocol
DiscussionThe results of the scoping review will be used to develop a checklist that will be used by medical doctors in collaboration with radiographers working in settings where there are no radiologists on-site, for interpreting chest radiographs.Systematic review registrationScoping review protocol registered with Open Science Framework on 27 July 2022. Registrationhttps://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/JS5PQ (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 30, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Indigenous communities and influenza: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
The objective of this paper is to describe the protocol to be used in a review and meta-analysis of the literature on Indigenous groups and influenza. Using this protocol as a guide, a future study will provide a comprehensive historical overview of pre-COVID impact of influenza on Indigenous groups by combining data from the last five influenza pandemics and seasonal influenza up to date.Methods/principle findingsThe review will include peer-reviewed original studies published in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian. Records will be identified through systematic literature search in eight databases...
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 30, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Proximal gastrectomy and double-tract reconstruction vs total gastrectomy in gastric and gastro-esophageal junction cancer patients — a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42021291500)
DiscussionThis systematic review will identify the current study pool concerning the comparison of TG and PG-DTR and help to finally refine the research questions and to allow an evidence-based trial design of the planned multicenter randomized-controlled trial.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval is not required for this systematic review. Study findings will be shared by publication in a peer-reviewed journal.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42021291500. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 29, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
A systematic review of early motor interventions for infants with congenital heart disease and open-heart surgery
ConclusionsEarly motor intervention in CHD infants may improve motor development; however, the few existing studies do not provide clear evidence. Thus, more prospective early intervention studies are needed.Trial registrationPROSPERO CRD42020200981. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 25, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Relationship between dyslipidemia and diabetic retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review and meta-analysis
ConclusionThe present results suggest that baseline triglyceride and cholesterol levels are significantly associated with the occurrence of DR in patients with T2DM. Thus, patients with T2DM may benefit from lowering serum lipids. Future studies exploring the relationship between longitudinal changes in serum lipids and DR occurrence are warranted.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42022319978 (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 24, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Comparative efficacy of oral drugs for chronic radiation proctitis — a systematic review
ConclusionsOur study implies that oral TCM drinks, retinyl palmitate and a high-fiber diet showed significant improvement in CRP symptoms, but not with the combination of oral pentoxifylline and tocopherol. Further multicentre, larger-scale RCTs are needed to confirm the efficacy and safety of these treatments and optimize treatment strategies, ultimately improving the quality of life for patients with CRP. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 22, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Community capacity for prevention and health promotion: a scoping review on underlying domains and assessment methods
DiscussionThis scoping review provides an overview of the domains and methods used to assess community capacity, which can facilitate the development of a comprehensive approach to capacity assessment in future research. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 22, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Tramadol for chronic pain in adults: protocol for a systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis of randomised clinical trials
DiscussionAlthough tramadol is often being used to manage chronic pain conditions, the beneficial and harmful effects of this intervention are unknown. The present review will systematically assess the current evidence on the benefits and harms of tramadol versus placebo or no intervention to inform clinical practice and future research.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42019140334. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 22, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Effects of gut microbial therapy on lipid profile in individuals with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: an umbrella meta-analysis study
ConclusionConsidering the absence of approved treatments for NAFLD and the promising role of microbial therapies in improving the three lipid profiles components in individuals with NAFLD, the use of these agents as alternative treatment options could be recommended. The findings underscore the potential of gut microbial therapy, including probiotics, synbiotics, and prebiotics, in managing NAFLD and its associated metabolic complications.Trial registrationPROSPERO (CRD42022346998).Graphical Abstract (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 21, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
A systematic review of the safety and efficacy on cognitive function of herbal and nutritional medicines in older adults with and without subjective cognitive impairment
ConclusionsOverall, this review found that there is a low quality of evidence regarding the efficacy of cognitive function and safety of herbal and nutritional medicines for older adults with and without SCI, due to a high risk of bias across studies. Additionally, further work needs to be done in classifying and understanding SCI and selecting appropriate trial primary outcomes before future studies can more accurately determine the efficacy of interventions for this population. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 17, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
Data visualisation in scoping reviews and evidence maps on health topics: a cross-sectional analysis
ConclusionsData visualisation is currently underused by scoping review authors. In particular, there is potential for much greater use of more innovative forms of data visualisation and interactive data visualisation. Where more innovative data visualisation is used, scoping reviews have made use of a wide range of different methods. Increased use of these more engaging visualisations may make scoping reviews more useful for a range of stakeholders. (Source: Systematic Reviews)
Source: Systematic Reviews - August 17, 2023 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research
