375,926 papers found

Literature reviews have suggested that combination antidepressant/antipsychotic drug therapy and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) are of comparable efficacy in treating psychotic depression, and distinctly superior to antidepressant alone or antipsychotic alone. We undertook a meta-analysis of 44 studies, and focussed o…

Depressive episodes present a treatment challenge in bipolar disorder (BD), and an urgent need exists for novel treatment options. This review sought to revisit the results from a recent network meta-analysis (NMA) that examined treatment options for bipolar depression and to update those findings with a complementary…

It is a well-known fact that dietary fiber is recognized as one of the essential components of a healthy diet. The aim of this paper was to investigate the impact of dietary fiber on the incidence and mortality of various types of cancer, the current evidence in this field, and the biases of this evidence using the met…

BACKGROUND: Long bone fractures may exhibit nonunion/delayed union and the precise mechanism underlying this devastating condition remain unknown. More recently, a series of meta-analyses have examined the effect of local administration of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in patients suffering from nonunion/delayed union fra…

A method for a meta-analysis of several environmental or occupational epidemiological studies with small prevalences and/or incidences and long latency periods is presented. A combination of statistical evaluations of small prevalences should be done in the following way: (1) selecting relevant and comparable studies,…

Meta-analysis is increasingly performed to try and answer clinical questions around which controversy exists. We performed meta-analyses using three different methods as examples to illustrate problems and points to consider when doing such work. The questions of interest were comparing frequency of nephrotoxicity and…

Artificial grammar learning (AGL) has become an important tool used to understand aspects of human language learning and whether the abilities underlying learning may be unique to humans or found in other species. Successful learning is typically assumed when human or animal participants are able to distinguish stimuli…

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of nonpharmacological therapies for patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been progressively proved. However, the specific differences in effectiveness among various nonpharmacological interventions and their combinations with pharmacological interventions remain unclear, and…

Most airborne contaminants have minimal health effects at typical ambient levels, and this is especially true for contaminant levels in the Arctic. Among multiple studies of similar health effects, usually only one or two of the studies show statistically significant effects. Only after an attempt to quantitatively com…

Although radiotherapy is recognized as an established risk factor for second malignant neoplasms (SMNs), the dose response of SMNs following radiotherapy has not been well characterized. In our previous meta-analysis of the risks of SMNs occurring among children who have received radiotherapy, the small number of eligi…

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Episodic migraine is a neurological disorder characterized by recurrent, unilateral headaches that significantly impair quality of life. CGRP monoclonal antibodies, targeting calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), have shown efficacy in preventing and treating episodic migraine. METHODS: A sys…

OBJECTIVE: There is an ongoing debate how to interpret findings of meta-analyses when substantial clinical heterogeneity is present among included trials. The aim of the present study was to demonstrate various ways of dealing with clinical heterogeneity along with underlying assumptions and interpretation. A recent me…

Meta-analysis combines results from multiple longitudinal studies to describe life course variation by age and sex for quantity of drinking per typical occasion (20 studies) and frequency of drinking during one month (27 studies). There is cross-study heterogeneity for the Time 1 means of the drinking variables blockin…

To determine the relative merits of two quantitative methods used to estimate the summary effects of observational studies, the authors compared two methods of meta-analysis. Each quantified the relation between oral contraceptive use and the risk for ovarian cancer. One analysis consisted of a meta-analysis using summ…

Reviewers have consistently concluded that males perform better on mathematics tests than females do. To make a refined assessment of the magnitude of gender differences in mathematics performance, we performed a meta-analysis of 100 studies. They yielded 254 independent effect sizes, representing the testing of 3,175,…

BACKGROUND: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is crucial for prolonging the lives of people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), but adherence remains suboptimal. Psychosocial interventions show promise for improving ART adherence, yet no consensus exists on the most effective approach. OBJECTIVES: To identify the most…

A meta-analysis was undertaken to determine the effects of surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis on pain and disability. Seventy-four journal articles met inclusion criteria and were independently reviewed by two readers. On average, 64% of patients treated surgically for lumbar spinal stenosis were reported to have good-…

This systematic review and network meta-analysis aimed to compare the effects of dietary protein, creatine, and omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on muscle strength, endurance performance, and recovery outcomes in trained athletes. A comprehensive literature search across MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, Web of Scie…

OBJECTIVES: Results of meta-analyses typically conclude that future large studies may be mandated. However, the predictive ability of these estimates is deficient. We explored meta-analytic prediction intervals as means for providing a clear and appropriate future treatment summary reflecting current estimates. STUDY…