Development Status and Quality Evaluation on Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Dominant Diseases with Chinese Patent Medicines / 中医杂志

ObjectiveTo analyze the development status and quality of clinical practice guidelines for the treatment of dominant diseases with Chinese patent medicines （CPMs）. MethodsDatabases were searched from Jan. 2019 to Dec.2023 to collect the published clinical practice guidelines of CPMs for the treatment of dominant diseases. The information about the title， the participants， clinical problems， outcomes， evidence grade， recommendations， and recommendation strength in the included clinical practice guidelines were collected， for which the development status was analyzed， and the quality was evaluated with the Scientific， Transparent and Applicable Rankings （STAR） tool for clinical practice guidelines. ResultsTotally， 34 guidelines were included， involving 273 kinds of CPMs. One to ten （with the medium five） clinical problems were proposed from 29 clinical practice guidelines respectively. All the guidelines divided the evidence into four grades according to Grade of Recommendation Assessment， Deve-lopement an Evaluation. And 28 guidelines had five levels of recommendation strength. A total of 344 recommendations were extracted， including 86 strong-recommendations， 191 weak-recommendations （including 36 weak recommendations only based on expert consensus） and 67 recommendations with unclear recommendation strength. All guidelines had high scores in the three areas of “clinical questions （94.20%）”， “evidence （91.45%）” and “recommendations （89.06%）”， while the scores in the three areas of “registry （22.06%）”， “protocol （19.00%）” and “accessibility （31.51%）” were low. The STAR recommended stars of 8 guidelines were 5.0~4.0 stars， while that of 18 guidelines were 3.5~2.5 stars， and 8 guidelines were 2.0~1.0 stars. The three guidelines with the highest recommended stars were depressive disorder， community-acquired pneumonia， and influenza in adult. ConclusionThere is a certain gap in the quality of the published clinical practice guidelines of CPMs， and the quality of the guidelines could be further improved in registry， protocols， funds， and accessibility.

Scientificity, transparency and applicability of Chinese guidelines and consensuses in medical imaging published in 2022 / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To evaluate the scientificity, transparency and applicability of the Chinese guidelines and consensuses in medical imaging published in 2022 by the STAR scale.Methods:Medical imaging guidelines and consensuses were searched in CNKI, Wanfang data, CMB, Chinese Medical Journal Network, and Medline (PubMed). The publication date was selected from January 1 to December 31, 2022. Each guideline or consensus was independently evaluated and cross-checked by two evaluators using STAR scale.Results:A total of 65 guidelines and consensus that were published as Chinese or English were included, including 15 guidelines and 50 consensuses. Some guidelines and consensus have distinct disciplinary characteristics with topics such as artificial intelligence (4 articles) and Evidence-Based Medical Imaging-Medical Imaging Clinical Appropriateness (EB-MICA, 4 articles). In all guidelines and consensuses, the highest score was 89.9, the lowest was 3.6, and the M( Q1, Q3) was 25.0 (20.8, 35.4). There was no statistical difference in the scores of guidelines and consensuses ( P=0.383). The highest scoring areas were recommendation opinions (reporting rate of 56.0%), working groups (reporting rate of 38.2%), and clinical issues (reporting rate of 36.7%), while the lowest scoring areas were proposal (reporting rate of 9.6%), registration (reporting rate of 10.8%), and consensus methods (reporting rate of 21.8%). Conclusion:It is recommended that guidelines and consensuses initiators of medical imaging strengthen the learning of evidence-based medicine methods, such as STAR tools, in order to further improve the quality of guidelines and consensuses of medical imaging.

Development of the Scientific, Transparent and Applicable Rankings (STAR) tool for clinical practice guidelines / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

BACKGROUND@#This study aimed to develop a comprehensive instrument for evaluating and ranking clinical practice guidelines, named Scientific, Transparent and Applicable Rankings tool (STAR), and test its reliability, validity, and usability.@*METHODS@#This study set up a multidisciplinary working group including guideline methodologists, statisticians, journal editors, clinicians, and other experts. Scoping review, Delphi methods, and hierarchical analysis were used to develop the STAR tool. We evaluated the instrument's intrinsic and interrater reliability, content and criterion validity, and usability.@*RESULTS@#STAR contained 39 items grouped into 11 domains. The mean intrinsic reliability of the domains, indicated by Cronbach's α coefficient, was 0.588 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.414, 0.762). Interrater reliability as assessed with Cohen's kappa coefficient was 0.774 (95% CI: 0.740, 0.807) for methodological evaluators and 0.618 (95% CI: 0.587, 0.648) for clinical evaluators. The overall content validity index was 0.905. Pearson's r correlation for criterion validity was 0.885 (95% CI: 0.804, 0.932). The mean usability score of the items was 4.6 and the median time spent to evaluate each guideline was 20 min.@*CONCLUSION@#The instrument performed well in terms of reliability, validity, and efficiency, and can be used for comprehensively evaluating and ranking guidelines.

Clinical effect of balloon pressurized kyphoplasty for fresh single-segment vertebral compression fractures / 国际外科学杂志

Objective:To study the clinical effect of balloon compression closure kyphoplasty in the treatment of fresh single-segment vertebral compression fracture.Methods:A retrospective study was used to analyze the clinical data of 80 patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture (OVCF) admitted to Gansu Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from June 2019 to June 2021. They were divided into two groups according to the surgical methods: the simple percutaneous kyphoplasty (PKP) group and the percutaneous kyphoplasty compression group, with 40 patients in each group. The PKP group was routinely treated with PKP, and the PKP compression group was treated with balloon compression occlusion technology on the basis of the PKP group. The amount of bone cement injected, the leakage of bone cement, the height of the anterior edge of the injured vertebra, the Cobb angle of kyphosis, the visual analogue score (VAS) and the Oswestry dysfunction index (ODI) were compared between the two groups. The measurement data conforming to the normal distribution were expressed as ( ± s), and the comparison between the two groups was conducted by t-test; The counting data were expressed by n(%) and the comparison between the two groups adopts Chi-square or Fisher exact probability. Results:The amount of bone cement injected and the leakage rate of bone cement in the PKP compression group were significantly higher than those in the simple PKP group ( P<0.05). The height of the anterior edge of the injured vertebra in the two groups was significantly higher than that before the operation on the first day and three months after the operation ( P<0.05). The Cobb angle, VAS score and ODI index of the injured vertebra in the two groups were significantly lower than that before the operation on the first day and three months after the operation ( P<0.05). The height of the anterior edge of the injured vertebra in the PKP compression group was significantly higher than that in the PKP group ( P<0.05). The Cobb angle of kyphosis in the PKP compression group was significantly lower than that in the simple PKP group at 1 day and 3 months after operation ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in VAS score between PKP compression group and PKP group on 1 day after operation ( P>0.05), and compared with PKP group on 3 months after operation ( P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the ODI index between the PKP compression group and the two groups 1 day and 3 months after PKP ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Balloon compression closure technology can significantly reduce the leakage of bone cement in PKP and increase the amount of bone cement injected, which is beneficial to reduce the pain of vertebral body and improve the function of OVCF patients, and can improve the clinical treatment effect, which is worth promoting.

Strategies and suggestions for improving the quality of guidelines and consensus in the field of dermatology / 中华皮肤科杂志

In recent years, the number of guidelines/consensus in the field of dermatology has increased in China, but the quality is variable. This article proposes to describe the specific process of guideline/consensus development in 10 steps, focusing on the initiation phase, advancement phase, as well as dissemination, implementation and update phases, with the aim to improve the quality of guidelines/consensus in the field of dermatology.

Protocols for guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of atopic dermatitis (specialist version, general practitioner version and patient version) / 中华皮肤科杂志

In order to further standardize the diagnosis and treatment of atopic dermatitis by health-care professionals, as well as to enhance the awareness of atopic dermatitis among patients and promote doctor-patient communication, Chinese Society of Dermatology and China Dermatologist Association jointly initiated the development of guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of atopic dermatitis (specialist version, general practitioner version and patient version). The development working group had planned the development process of the 3 versions of guidelines with reference to relevant development manuals and methodological articles. It is also intended to expound the details of registration, working group establishment, clinical question collection, evidence search and grading, recommendation formation and consensus through this protocol, aiming to enhance the transparency of guideline development.

Assessment study on the quality of diagnostic radiographic case reports published in imaging journals of the Chinese science citation database / 中华放射学杂志

Objective:To evaluate the reporting quality of diagnostic radiological imaging case reports published in Chinese science citation database (CSCD) imaging journals.Methods:This study was a cross-sectional survey. We searched CSCD to include imaging journals from 2021 to 2022, from which we retrieved diagnostic radiological imaging case reports published in 2020, and evaluated their reporting quality using case reports (CARE) reporting criteria.Results:A total of five imaging CSCD journals were searched, with 161 final diagnostic imaging case reports included. The median and interquartile range reporting rate of the included studies was 33.5% (7.5%, 93.3%), and patient perspective and informed consent were not reported in all studies. Items with reporting rates below 10% included 3a (abstract-introduction), 3c (abstract-diagnoses, therapeutic interventions, and outcomes), 8b (diagnostic challenges), and 8d (prognosis where applicable), with reporting rates of 2.5% (4/161), 0.6% (1/161), 0.6% (1/161), and 4.3% (7/161), respectively. Reporting rates for items between 10% and 50% included 3b (abstract-main symptoms and/or important clinical findings), 4 (introduction), 5c (medical, family, and psycho-social history), 7 (timeline), 10 (follow-up and outcomes), and 11a (a scientific discussion of the strengths and limitations), with reporting rates of 16.8% (27/161), 30.4% (49/161), 34.2% (55/161), 24.8% (40/161), 32.9% (53/161), and 31.7% (51/161), respectively; The reporting rates for item 1 (title), item 2 (keywords), item 5a (identified patient specific information), item 5b (primary concerns and symptoms of the patient), item 8a (diagnostic testing), and item 11c (the scientific rationale for any conclusions) were all over 90%. Moreover, the number of authors as well as the number of disciplines were not associated with the quality of diagnostic imaging case reports.Conclusions:The overall adherence to CARE items in radiographic diagnostic case reports published in the CSCD imaging journals is low. Editors of the imaging journals, radiologists and the researchers of the reporting standard should emphasize the guidelines for drafting case reports and improve the quality of reporting of case reports.

Safety, Immunogenicity, and Efficacy of COVID-19 Vaccine in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

AimTo identify the safety, immunogenicity, and protective efficacy of COVID-19 vaccine in children and adolescents. MethodsWe conducted a systematic review. Databases including PubMed, Web of Science, WHO COVID-19 database, and CNKI were searched on 23 July 2021. International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) was also searched to collect ongoing trials. We included published researches or ongoing clinical trials related to the safety, immunogenicity, and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccine in children or adolescents (aged [≤]18 years). Meta-analysis was performed if the consistency of the included studies was high. If not, descriptive analyses were performed. ResultsEight published studies with 2851 children or adolescents and 28 ongoing clinical trials were included. Among eight published studies, two (25.0%) were RCTs, two (25.0%) case series, and four (50.0%) case reports. The results showed selected COVID-19 vaccines had a good safety profile in children and adolescents. Injection site pain, fatigue, headache, and chest pain were the most common adverse events. Some studies reported a few cases of myocarditis and pericarditis. Two RCTs showed that the immune response to BNT162b2 in adolescents aged 12-15 years was non-inferior to that in young people aged 16-25 years, while a stronger immune response was detected with 3g CoronaVac injection. Only one single RCT showed the efficacy of BNT162b2 was 100% (95% CI: 75.3 to 100). Of the 28 ongoing clinical trials, twenty-three are interventional studies. Fifteen countries are conducting interventional clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccines in children and adolescents. Among them, China (10, 43.5%) and United Stated (9, 39.1%) were the top two countries with the most trials. BNT162b2 was the most common vaccine, which is under testing. ConclusionSome of the COVID-19 vaccines have potential protective effects in children and adolescents, but awareness is needed to monitor possible adverse effects after injection. Clinical trials of the COVID-19 vaccine in children and adolescents with long follow-up, large sample size, and different vaccines are still urgently needed.

Potentially effective drugs for the treatment of COVID-19 in children: a systematic review

IntroductionThe purpose of this systematic review is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of using potential drugs: remdesivir and glucocorticoid in treating children and adolescents with COVID-19 and intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in treating MIS-C. MethodsWe searched seven databases, three preprint platform, ClinicalTrials.gov, and Google from December 1, 2019, to August 5, 2021, to collect evidence of remdesivir, glucocorticoid, and IVIG which were used in children and adolescents with COVID-19 or MIS-C. ResultsA total of six cohort studies and one case series study were included in this systematic review. In terms of remdesivir, the meta-analysis of single-arm cohort studies have shown that, after the treatment, 37.1% (95%CI, 0.0% to 74.5%) experienced adverse events, 5.9% (95%CI, 1.5% to 10.2%) died, 37.2% (95%CI, 0% to 76.0%) needed extracorporeal membrane oxygenation or invasive mechanical ventilation. As for glucocorticoids, the results of the meta-analysis showed that the fixed-effect summary odds ratio for the association with mortality was 2.79 (95%CI, 0.13 to 60.87), and the mechanical ventilation rate was 3.12 (95%CI, 0.80 to 12.08) for glucocorticoids compared with the control group. In terms of IVIG, the two included cohort studies showed that for MIS-C patients with more severe clinical symptoms, IVIG combined with methylprednisolone could achieve better clinical efficacy than IVIG alone. ConclusionsOverall, the current evidence in the included studies is insignificant and of low quality. It is recommended to conduct high-quality randomized controlled trials of remdesivir, glucocorticoids, and IVIG in children and adolescents with COVID-19 or MIS-C to provide substantial evidence for the development of guidelines.

Chinese clinical practice guidelines for perioperative blood glucose management.

With the increased incidence of diabetes, the number of diabetic patients who require surgical treatment is also increasing. Unfortunately, practices in this area lack standardisation. The purpose of this multidisciplinary, evidence-based guidelines for perioperative blood glucose management is to provide a comprehensive set of recommendations for clinicians treating diabetes with different types of surgery. The intended audience comprises Chinese endocrinologists, surgeons, anaesthetists, clinical pharmacists, nurses and professionals involved in perioperative blood glucose management. The guidelines were formulated as follows. First, a multidisciplinary expert group was established to identify and formulate key research questions on topics of priority according to the Population, Intervention, Comparator and Outcomes (PICO) process. We conducted a meta-analysis of available studies using Review Manager version 5.3, as appropriate. We pooled crude estimates as odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals using a random-effects model, and used the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation methods to assess the quality of the retrieved evidence. Finally, 32 recommendations were gathered that covered 11 fields-management and coordination, endocrinologists' consultation, diabetes diagnosis, surgery timing and anaesthesia method, blood glucose target values and monitoring frequency, hypoglycaemia treatment, oral administration of blood glucose lowering drugs, use of insulin, enteral and parenteral nutritional, postoperative treatment and medication and education and training. Twenty-five systematic reviews and meta-analyses were conducted for these guidelines to address the PICO questions. These guidelines are intended to improve perioperative blood glucose management and help doctors in specifying medical diagnosis and treatment, and will be implemented / disseminated extensively in China.

Reflections on development of American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists clinical practice guidelines and clinical consensus methodology for development of Chinese guidelines in obstetrics and gynecology / 中华围产医学杂志

This article introduces two methodological articles published by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in September 2021 on their development of clinical practice guidelines and clinical expert consensus, focusing on the composition of the guidelines committee, declaration and management of conflicts of interest, and the detailed development process. On this basis, reflections and suggestions for the development of guidelines and consensus in obstetrics and gynecology in China are presented from the perspective of developing a handbook for standardized guideline development, registration and reporting of guidelines, use of available evidence, management of conflicts of interest, and regular evaluations of relevant published guidelines.

Projecting the second outbreaks for global COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 is now in an epidemic phase, with a second outbreak likely to appear at any time. The intensity and timing of a second outbreak is a common concern worldwide. In this study, we made scenario projections of the potential second outbreak of COVID-19 using a statistical-epidemiology model, which considers both the impact of seasonal changes in meteorological elements and human social behaviors such as protests and city unblocking. Recent street protests in the United States and other countries are identified as a hidden trigger and amplifier of the second outbreak. The scale and intensity of subsequent COVID-19 outbreaks in the U.S. cities where the epidemic is under initial control are projected to be much greater than those of the first outbreak. For countries without reported protests, lifting the COVID-19 related restrictions prematurely would accelerate the spread of the disease and place mounting pressure on the local medical system that is already overloaded. We anticipate these projections will support public health planning and policymaking by governments and international organizations.

Effectiveness and Safety of Glucocorticoids to Treat COVID-19: A Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis

BackgroundGlucocorticoids are widely used in the treatment of various pulmonary inflammatory diseases, but they are also often accompanied by significant adverse reactions. Published guidelines point out that low dose and short duration systemic glucocorticoid therapy may be considered for patients with rapidly progressing COVID-19 while the evidence is still limited. MethodsWe comprehensively searched electronic databases and supplemented the screening by conducting a manual search. We included RCTs and cohort studies evaluating the effectiveness and safety of glucocorticoids in children and adults with COVID-19, SARS and MERS, and conducted meta-analyses of the main indicators that were identified in the studies. ResultsOur search retrieved 23 studies, including one RCT and 22 cohort studies, with a total of 13,815 patients. In adults with COVID-19, the use of systemic glucocorticoid did not reduce mortality (RR=2.00, 95% CI: 0.69 to 5.75, I2=90.9%) or the duration of lung inflammation (WMD=-1 days, 95% CI: -2.91 to 0.91), while a significant reduction was found in the duration of fever (WMD=-3.23 days, 95% CI: -3.56 to -2.90). In patients with SARS, glucocorticoids also did not reduce the mortality (RR=1.52, 95% CI: 0.89 to 2.60, I2=84.6%), duration of fever (WMD=0.82 days, 95% CI: -2.88 to 4.52, I2=97.9%) or duration of lung inflammation absorption (WMD=0.95 days, 95% CI: -7.57 to 9.48, I2=94.6%). The use of systemic glucocorticoid therapy prolonged the duration of hospital stay in all patients (COVID-19, SARS and MERS). ConclusionsGlucocorticoid therapy was found to reduce the duration of fever, but not mortality, duration of hospitalization or lung inflammation absorption. Long-term use of high-dose glucocorticoids increased the risk of adverse reactions such as coinfections, so routine use of systemic glucocorticoids for patients with COVID-19 cannot be recommend.

Effectiveness of Intravenous Immunoglobulin for Children with Severe COVID-19: A Rapid Review

BackgroundIntravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) is usually used as supportive therapy, but the treatment of COVID-19 by IVIG is controversial. This rapid review aims to explore the clinical effectiveness and safety of IVIG in the treatment of children with severe COVID-19. MethodsWe systematically searched the literature on the use of IVIG in patients with COVID-19, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), including both adults and children. We assessed the risk of bias and quality of evidence and reported the main findings descriptively. ResultsA total of 1519 articles were identified by initial literature search, and finally six studies, included one randomized controlled trial (RCT), four case series and one case report involving 198 patients. One case series showed the survival of COVID-19 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was not improved by IVIG. One case report showed high-dose IVIG could improve the outcome of COVID-19 adults. Three observational studies showed inconsistent results of the effect of IVIG on SARS patients. One RCT showed that IVIG did not reduce mortality or the incidence of nosocomial infection in adults with severe SARS. The quality of evidence was between low and very low. ConclusionsThe existing evidence is insufficient to support the efficacy or safety of IVIG in the treatment of COVID-19.

Health Education for Parents During the COVID-19 OutbreakPublic Health Education for Parents During the Outbreak of COVID-19: A Rapid Review

BackgroundIt is well-known that public health education plays a crucial role in the prevention and control of emerging infectious diseases, but how health providers should advise families and parents to obtain health education information is a challenging question. With COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease 2019) spreading around the world, this rapid review aims to answer that question and thus to promote evidence-based decision making in health education policy and practice. MethodsWe systematically searched the literature on health education during COVID-19, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (middle east respiratory syndrome) epidemics in Medline (via PubMed), Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Web of Science, CBM (China Biology Medicine disc), CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), and Wanfang Data from their inception until March 31, 2020. The potential bias of the studies was assessed by Joanna Briggs Institute Prevalence Critical Appraisal Tool. ResultsOf 1067 papers found, 24 cross-sectional studies with a total of 35,967 participants were included in this review. The general public lacked good knowledge of SARS and MERS at the early stage of epidemics. Some peoples knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of COVID-19 had been improved, but the health behaviors of some special groups including children and their parents need to be strengthened. Negative emotions including fear and stigmatization occurred during the outbreaks. Reliable health information was needed to improve public awareness and mental health for infectious diseases. Health information from nonprofit, government and academic websites was more accurate than privately owned commercial websites and media websites. ConclusionsFor educating and cultivating children, parents should obtain information from the official websites of authorities such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and national Centers for Disease Control, or from other sources endorsed by these authorities, rather than from a general search of the internet or social media.

Breastfeeding of Infants Born to Mothers with COVID-19: A Rapid Review

BackgroundExisting recommendations on whether mothers with COVID-19 should continue breastfeeding are still conflicting. We aimed to conduct a rapid review of mother-to-child transmission of COVID-19 during breastfeeding. MethodsWe systematically searched Medline, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane library, China Biology Medicine disc, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, and preprint articles up to March 2020. We included studies relevant to transmission through milk and respiratory droplets during breastfeeding of mothers with COVID-19, SARS, MERS and influenza. Two reviewers independently screened studies for eligibility, extracted data, assessed risk of bias and used GRADE to assess certainty of evidence. ResultsA total of 4481 records were identified in our literature search. Six studies (five case reports and one case series) involving 58 mothers (16 mothers with COVID-19, 42 mothers with influenza) and their infants proved eligible. Five case reports showed that the viral nucleic acid tests for all thirteen collected samples of breast milk from mothers with COVID-19 were negative. A case series of 42 influenza infected postpartum mothers taking precautions (hand hygiene and wearing masks) before breastfeeding showed that no neonates were infected with influenza during one-month of follow-up. ConclusionsThe current evidence indicates that SARS-CoV-2 viral nucleic acid has not been detected in breast milk. The benefits of breastfeeding may outweigh the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection in infants. Mothers with COVID-19 should take appropriate precautions to reduce the risk of transmission via droplets and close contact during breastfeeding.

Chest Computed Tomography for the Diagnosis of Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis

BackgroundThe outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had a massive impact on the whole world. Computed tomography (CT) has been widely used in the diagnosis of this novel pneumonia. This study aims to understand the role of CT for the diagnosis and the main imaging manifestations of patients with COVID-19. MethodsWe conducted a rapid review and meta-analysis on studies about the use of chest CT for the diagnosis of COVID-19. We comprehensively searched databases and preprint servers on chest CT for patients with COVID-19 between 1 January 2020 and 31 March 2020. The primary outcome was the sensitivity of chest CT imaging. We also conducted subgroup analyses and evaluated the quality of evidence using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. ResultsA total of 104 studies with 5694 patients were included. Using RT-PCR results as reference, a meta-analysis based on 64 studies estimated the sensitivity of chest CT imaging in COVID-19 was 99% (95% CI, 0.97-1.00). If case reports were excluded, the sensitivity in case series was 96% (95% CI, 0.93-0.99). The sensitivity of CT scan in confirmed patients under 18 years old was only 66% (95% CI, 0.11-1.00). The most common imaging manifestation was ground-glass opacities (GGO) which was found in 75% (95% CI, 0.68-0.82) of the patients. The pooled probability of bilateral involvement was 84% (95% CI, 0.81-0.88). The most commonly involved lobes were the right lower lobe (84%, 95% CI, 0.78-0.90) and left lower lobe (81%, 95% CI, 0.74-0.87). The quality of evidence was low across all outcomes. ConclusionsIn conclusion, this meta-analysis indicated that chest CT scan had a high sensitivity in diagnosis of patients with COVID-19. Therefore, CT can potentially be used to assist in the diagnosis of COVID-19.

Efficacy and Safety of Antibiotic Agents in Children with COVID-19: A Rapid Review

BackgroundThe aim of this review was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of antibiotic agents in children with COVID-19, as well as to introduce the present situation of antibiotics use and bacterial coinfections in COVID-19 patients. MethodsWe searched Cochrane library, Medline, Embase, Web of Science, CBM, Wanfang Data and CNKI from their inception to March 31, 2020. In addition, we searched related studies on COVID-19 published before March 31, 2020 through Google Scholar. We evaluated the risk of bias of included studies, and synthesized the results using a qualitative synthesis. ResultsSix studies met our inclusion criteria. Five studies on SARS showed an overall risk of death of 7.2% to 20.0%. One study of SARS patients who used macrolides, quinolones or beta lactamases showed that the mean duration of hospital stay was 14.2, 13.8 and 16.2 days, respectively, and their average duration of fever was 14.3, 14.0 and 16.2 days, respectively. One cohort study on MERS indicated that macrolide therapy was not associated with a significant reduction in 90-day mortality (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.47-1.51, P = 0.56) and improvement in MERS-CoV RNA clearance (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 0.88, 95% CI 0.47, -1.64], P = 0.68). According to the findings of 33 studies, the proportion of antibiotics use ranged from 19.4% to 100.0% in children and 13.2% to 100.0% in adults, despite the lack of etiological evidence. The most commonly used antibiotics in adults were quinolones, cephalosporins and macrolides and in children meropenem and linezolid. ConclusionsThe benefits of antibiotic agents for adults with SARS or MERS were questionable in the absence of bacterial coinfections. There is no evidence to support the use of antibiotic agents for children with COVID-19 in the absence of bacterial coinfection.

Supportive Care for Patient with Respiratory Diseases: An Umbrella Review

BackgroundSupportive treatment is an important and effective part of the management for patients with life-threatening diseases. This study aims to identify and evaluate the forms of supportive care for patients with respiratory diseases. MethodsAn umbrella review of supportive care for patient respiratory diseases was undertaken. We comprehensively searched the following databases: Medline, EMBASE, Web of Science, CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure), Wanfang Data and CBM (SinoMed) from their inception to 31 March 2020, and other sources to identify systematic reviews and meta-analyses related to supportive treatments for patient with respiratory diseases including COVID-19, SARS, MERS and influenza. We assessed the methodological quality using the AMSTAR score and the quality of the evidence for the primary outcomes of each included systematic review and meta-analysis. ResultsWe included 18 systematic reviews and meta-analyses in this study. Most studies focused on the respiratory and circulatory support. Ten studies were of high methodological quality, five studies of medium quality, and three studies of low quality. According to four studies extracorporeal membrane oxygenation did not reduce mortality in adults (OR/RR ranging from 0.71 to 1.28), but two studies reported significantly lower mortality in patients receiving venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation than in the control group (OR/RR ranging from 0.38 to 0.73). Besides, monitoring of vital signs and increasing the number of medical staff may also reduce the mortality in patients with respiratory diseases. ConclusionsOur overview suggests that supportive care may reduce the mortality of patients with respiratory diseases to some extent. However, the quality of evidence for the primary outcomes in the included studies was low to moderate. Further systematic reviews and meta-analyses are needed to address the evidence gap regarding the supportive care for SARS, MERS and COVID-19.

Clinical Characteristics of Children with COVID-19: A Rapid Review and Meta-Analysis

BackgroundMost guidelines on COVID-19 published so far include recommendations for patients regardless of age. Clinicians need a more accurate understanding of the clinical characteristics of children with COVID-19. MethodsWe searched studies reporting clinical characteristics in children with COVID-19 published until March 31, 2020. We screened the literature, extracted the data and evaluated the risk of bias and quality of evidence of the included studies. We combined some of the outcomes (symptoms) in a single-arm meta-analysis using a random-effects model. ResultsOur search retrieved 49 studies, including 25 case reports, 23 case series and one cohort study, with a total of 1667 patients. Our meta-analysis showed that most children with COVID-19 have mild symptoms. Eighty-three percent of the children were within family clusters of cases, and 19% had no symptoms. At least 7% with digestive symptoms. The main symptoms of children were fever (48%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 39%, 56%) and cough (39%, 95% CI: 30%, 48%). The lymphocyte count was below normal level in only 15% [95% CI: 8%, 22%] of children which is different from adult patients. 66% [95% CI: 55%, 77%] of children had abnormal findings in CT imaging. ConclusionsMost children with COVID-19 have only mild symptoms, and many children are asymptomatic. Fever and cough are the most common symptoms in children. Vomiting and diarrhea were not common in children. The lymphocyte count is usually within the normal range in children.