44,621 papers found

AIMS: Standard inotropic treatment is often necessary in end-stage heart failure but may be harmful. We performed a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to investigate the effect of repeated administration of levosimendan on survival in patients with chronic heart failure. METHODS AND RESULTS: Four investigat…

BACKGROUND: To analyze the diagnostic value of color Doppler imaging (CDI) of blood flow in the retrobulbar vessels of eyes with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). METHODS: Pertinent publications were retrieved from the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed and the ISI Web of Knowledge up to October…

BACKGROUND: The standard treatment for brain metastases is whole brain radiation, but the medium survival is about 3-10 months and hadn't be improved for years. AIM: This study was to evaluate the effect of antineoplastic therapy combined with whole brain radiation for brain metastases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We sear…

BACKGROUND: Typhoid and paratyphoid fever remain important causes of morbidity worldwide. Accurate disease burden estimates are needed to guide policy decisions and prevention and control strategies. METHODS: We conducted a systematic literature review of the PubMed and Scopus databases using pre-defined criteria to i…

OBJECTIVE: The long-term use of milrinone is associated with increased mortality in chronic heart failure. A recent meta-analysis suggested that it might increase mortality in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. The authors conducted an updated meta-analysis of randomized trials in patients undergoing cardiac surgery…

BACKGROUND: Many clinicians and patients believe that endometriosis-associated pain is due to the lesions. Yet causality remains an enigma, because pain symptoms attributed to endometriosis occur in women without endometriosis and because pain symptoms and severity correlate poorly with lesion characteristics. Most res…

BACKGROUND: Emergency Medical Services (EMS) has started to embrace the early use of therapeutic hypothermia as standard treatment to improve neurological recovery in out-of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survivors. OBJECTIVE: We conducted a systematic review to provide an overall description of the current literature…

OBJECTIVES: To determine the incidence and characteristics of randomised controlled trials that report using the modified intention to treat approach, and how the approach is described. DESIGN: Systematic review. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane central register of controlled trials, ISI Web of Knowledge, Ovid,…

OBJECTIVE: The authors conducted a review of randomized studies to determine whether there were any advantages for clinically relevant outcomes by adding epidural analgesia in patients undergoing cardiac surgery under general anesthesia. DESIGN: Meta-analysis. SETTING: Hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 2366 patien…

OBJECTIVE: Controversial results exist on the effects of spinal analgesia in cardiac surgery. The authors conducted a review of randomized studies to show whether there are any advantages in clinically relevant outcomes using spinal analgesia in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. DESIGN: Meta-analysis. SETTING: Mul…

BACKGROUND: Incisional hernias are caused by the failure of the wall of the abdomen to close after abdominal surgery, leaving a hole through which the viscera protrude. Incisional hernias are repaired by further surgery. Surgical drains are frequently inserted during hernia repair with the aim of facilitating fluid dra…

INTRODUCTION: Opening of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) by pulsed low intensity ultrasound has been developed during the last decade and is now recognized as a safe technique to transiently and repeatedly open the BBB. This non- or minimally invasive technique allows for a targeted and uniform dispersal of a wide range…

Anterior compartment prolapse is commonly described as cystocele or anterior vaginal wall descent, although these terms do not identify the underlying mechanism of support failure. Similar POP-Q findings may result from different anatomical defects, including central cystocele, paravaginal support loss, apical descent,…

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses (MAs) are central to evidence-based practice (EBP). Despite their growing volume in low- and middle-income countries, especially those produced by nursing-affiliated institutions in North Africa (NA), no empirical meta-research has systematically asse…

Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most lethal malignancies, largely due to late diagnosis and limited treatment options. Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a well-established environmental and occupational carcinogen, and emerging epidemiological observations have raised questions about its potential involvement in can…

INTRODUCTION: The learning environment (LE) is widely recognized as a key focus of medical education scholarship, influencing student motivation, academic performance, professional identity formation, and wellbeing. Despite its recognized importance, a global, comprehensive understanding of research trends, key contrib…

INTRODUCTION: High blood pressure (BP) in obese populations poses significant cardiovascular risks, yet the comparative effectiveness of various weight loss interventions on BP remains unclear. This systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) aims to assess the comparative effectiveness of weight loss interventio…

Unmet healthcare needs, driven by structural and patient-level barriers, are particularly critical in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, limited research has examined how academic themes on this topic connect and evolve over time. This study analyzed the structure and temporal shifts in research tre…

Ultrastructural alterations in the central nervous system-such as synaptic dysfunction, axonal injury, and demyelination-contribute to the cognitive and sensorimotor deficits observed in neurological damage, in which TLR4-mediated neuroinflammation is a key pathological feature. This systematic review synthesizes evide…

BACKGROUND: Optic pathway gliomas (OPGs) are among the most frequent central nervous system tumors in children with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), yet their prevalence has not been systematically synthesized. Pooled prevalence estimates are important to inform clinical surveillance practices, particularly given the cr…