The prevalence of coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF): a systematic review and meta-analysis.

To date, studies on the prevalence of coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD) in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) have not been summarized and analyzed as a whole. We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the prevalence of CMD in patients with HFpEF. The PubMed, Cochrane, and Embase databases were searched from dates of inception until May 1, 2023. The primary outcome was the prevalence of CMD in patients with HFpEF, and values of CMD prevalence were pooled using a random-effects model. In total, 10 studies involving 1267 patients, including 822 with HFpEF and 445 without HFpEF, were included. The pooled prevalence of CMD in patients with HFpEF was 71% (95% CI, 0.63-0.79). In the subgroup analysis, the prevalence of CMD was 79% (95% CI, 0.71-0.87) by invasive measurement and 66% (95% CI, 0.54-0.77) by noninvasive measurement and 67% (95% CI, 0.52-0.82) with CFR < 2.0 and 75.0% (95% CI, 0.71-0.79) with CFR < 2.5. The prevalence of endothelium-independent CMD and endothelium-dependent CMD was 62% (95% CI, 0.53-0.72) and 50% (95% CI, 0.19-0.81), respectively. The prevalence of CMD was 74% (95% CI = 0.69-0.79) and 66% (95% CI = 0.41-0.90) in prospective and retrospective studies, respectively. Compared with the control group, patients with HFpEF had a significantly lower CFR (MD = - 1.28, 95% CI = - 1.82 to - 0.74, P < 0.01) and a higher prevalence of CMD (RR = 2.21, 95% CI = 1.52 to 3.20, P < 0.01). Qualitative analysis demonstrated that CMD might be associated with poor clinical outcomes in patients with HFpEF. In conclusion, this is the first systematic review and meta-analysis of all studies reporting the prevalence of CMD in patients with HFpEF. Our study demonstrates that CMD is common in patients with HFpEF and might be associated with poor clinical outcomes in these patients. Clinicians should attach importance to CMD in the diagnosis and treatment of HFpEF. The number of studies in this field is relatively small. Therefore, more high-quality studies are needed to explore the diagnostic and prognostic value of CMD and the potential role of CMD as a therapeutic target in patients with HFpEF.

Effect of Chinese medicine for promoting blood circulation on microvascular angina: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Blood-activating drugs (BADs) are widely used to treat microvascular angina in China. This study aims to summarize relevant evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to assess the efficacy and safety of BADs in the treatment of microvascular angina. METHODS: We searched for relevant studies before June 2019 from seven databases. Twenty-four studies were included of 1903 patients with microvascular angina. All studies compared the use of traditional Chinese medicine for activating blood circulation (BADs) and Western medicine (WM) with the use of Western medicine alone. RESULTS: In all, 15 trials reported a significant effect of BADs on improving clinical symptoms compared with the control treatment (P < .00001), and 8 trials reported significant effects of BADs on reducing the frequency of angina pectoris attacks compared with Western medicine treatment (P < .00001). The pooled results also demonstrated that BADs provided a significant benefit in reducing the dosage of nitroglycerin required (P = .02), the maximum range of ST-segment depression (P = .003) and the descending degree of the ST-T segment of ECG (P = .0002); prolonging the total time of treadmill exercise (P < .00001) and the time of ST-segment depression of 1 mm (P = .002); enhancing the total effective rate of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) syndromes (P < .00001); improving endothelial function (P < .00001); and reducing the levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) (P < .00001). BAD treatment showed no statistically significant effect on the levels of TNF-a (P = .8) or IL-6 (P = .13). No severe adverse events were reported. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis shows that BADs are effective for the treatment of microvascular angina. Although concerns regarding selective bias and low methodological quality were raised, our findings suggest that BADs are beneficial for patients with microvascular angina and should be given priority for future clinical studies.

Effects of therapeutic ultrasound for knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness and safety of therapeutic ultrasound with sham ultrasound on pain relief and functional improvement in knee osteoarthritis patients. As phonophoresis is a unique therapeutic ultrasound, we also compared the effects of phonophoresis with conventional non-drug ultrasound. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials from inception up to June 2019. REVIEW METHODS: Randomized controlled trials comparing therapeutic ultrasound with sham ultrasound in knee osteoarthritis patients were included. Phonophoresis in the experimental and control groups were compared through conventional ultrasound, and corresponding trials were also included. Two reviewers independently identified eligible studies and extracted data. Risk of bias assessments and therapeutic ultrasound safety assessments were also performed. RESULTS: Fifteen studies including three phonophoresis-related studies with 1074 patients were included. Meta-analyses demonstrated that therapeutic ultrasound significantly relieved pain (P < 0.00001) and reduced the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) physical function score (P = 0.03). In addition, therapeutic ultrasound increased the active range of motion (P < 0.00001) and reduced the Lequesne index (P < 0.00001). Subgroup analysis of phonophoresis ultrasound illustrated significant differences on the visual analogue scale (P = 0.009), but no significant differences on WOMAC pain subscales (P = 0.10), and total WOMAC scores were observed (P = 0.30). There was no evidence to suggest that ultrasound was unsafe treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Therapeutic ultrasound is a safe treatment to relieve pain and improve physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, phonophoresis does not produce additional benefits to functional improvement, but may relieve pain compared to conventional non-drug ultrasound.

Quality of adolescent and youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services and associated factors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Low-quality health care services are linked to a variety of health problems, which can have negative effects on adolescent and youth health. As a result, national data is crucial to providing high-quality healthcare to adolescents and youths in order to promote their health, wellness, and growth. Objective: To examine the quality of young people's sexual and reproductive health care services and factors associated with service satisfaction in Ethiopia. Methods: This review was carried out in accordance with the PRISMA guideline. We reviewed published data related to the quality of adolescent and youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services (AYSRHS) in Ethiopia from January 02, 2002 to December 30, 2022. Relevant studies were identified through Google Scholar, PubMed, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, and HINARI. The extracted data was imported into STATA version 14.0 software for analysis. Heterogeneity among the reported prevalence of studies was checked using χ2 and I2 tests. The publication bias was examined by Egger's correlation and Begg's regression intercept tests at a 5% significance level. Results: The national pooled magnitude of structural, process, and output dimensions of quality of AYSRHS is 54.22% (95% CI: 33.21, 75.24%), 35.44% (95% CI: 24.95, 45.93%), and 57.01% (95% CI: 50.32, 63.7%), respectively. Being female (AOR: 1.61, 95% CI: 1.14-2.27), employed (AOR: 1.82, 95% CI: 1.06-3.14), waiting <30 min to get services (AOR: 2.7, 95% CI: 1.69-4.31), and getting information on the availability of services (AOR: 1.56, 95% CI: 1.15-2.11) were significantly associated with client satisfaction with AYSRHS. Conclusion: The overall magnitude of quality of AYSRHS in the three dimensions is far below WHO quality standards, which are 75 percent for good quality. Sex, employment status, waiting time to get services, and information on the availability of services were significantly associated with client satisfaction with AYSRHS. Therefore, different stakeholders on different levels should work together to strengthen the quality of AYSRHS concidering the above factors. Systematic review registration: Identifier [CRD42023422667].

Attention deficit in primary-school-age children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder measured with the attention network test: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To review and meta-analyze patterns of attention deficit in primary-school-age children with ADHD measured with the neuropsychological attention network test (ANT). Methods: Six electronic databases were searched to 5.05.2022. Selection criteria included prospective cohort and intervention studies; ANT used; primary-school-age; diagnosis of ADHD/at high risk. Results: Seven studies met inclusion criteria (N = 3,826). Compared with controls, children with ADHD had higher scores for Reaction Time (Hedges' g = 0.433; 95% CI: 0.135-0.731), Reaction Time Variability (Hedges' g = 0.334; 95% CI: 0.012-0.657), and Alerting Network (Hedges' g = 0.235; 95% CI: 0.021-0.449) while children at high risk had higher Alerting Network scores (Hedges' g = 0.176; 95% CI: 0.003-0.349) and Correctness scores (Hedges' g = 1.956; 95% CI: 0.020-3.892). Conclusions: Children with ADHD and at risk of ADHD had different ANT results from children without ADHD only for the alerting network. There were no significant differences for executive and orienting outcomes. Children at risk of ADHD also made more errors (commission and omission) measured with the ANT compared with children without ADHD. Reaction time was longer and reaction time variability higher in children with ADHD than in children without ADHD, and in children at risk of ADHD compared with children without ADHD. Preregistration: A protocol has been registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) database (registration number: CRD42021249768).

The effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment on sciatica: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Sciatica results from primary or secondary damage to the sciatic nerve in the lumbar or gluteal region. The first option for sciatica is analgesics, but their therapeutic effect and safety in long-term use are questionable. On the other hand, acupuncture has recently been recognized as a complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) to conventional medicine, and studies on its effectiveness and safety have been actively conducted. OBJECTIVE: To systematically compare acupuncture with analgesics in terms of effect, safety, and durability in the treatment of sciatica METHODS: This review was performed in accordance with Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions Version 6.2. Four databases were searched for this review: Wangfang, the Korean Traditional Knowledge Portal (KTKP), PubMed, and EBSCOhost. The primary outcome measures in the review were total effective rate (TER), visual analog scale (VAS) score and pain threshold, and the secondary ones were adverse effects (AEs) and relapse rates. Risk ratio (RR) for TER and mean difference (MD) for VAS score and pain threshold were used as statistics for the meta-analysis of effectiveness, along with associated 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) and P-values. AEs and relapse rates were used for the safety and durability of the interventions. Version 2 of the Cochrane risk-of-bias assessment tool for randomized trials (RoB 2) was used for the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) included in the review. RESULTS: The synthesized TER of 28 RCTs involving 2707 participants was significantly higher in the acupuncture group compared to the analgesic group (RR [95 % CI] = 1.20 [1.16, 1.24], P < 0.001). The synthesized VAS score of 7 RCTs involving 589 participants was significantly reduced in the acupuncture group compared to the analgesic group (MD [95 % CI] = - 1.78 [- 2.44, - 1.12], P < 0.001). In 5 RCTs involving 311 participants, the synthesized pain threshold was significantly elevated in the acupuncture group compared to the analgesic group (MD [95 % CI] = 0.93 [0.64, 1.22], P < 0.001). Additionally, adverse effects (AEs) and relapse rates of RCTs in the review were lower in the acupuncture group compared to the analgesic group. CONCLUSION: In this systematic review, acupuncture treatment was significantly effective and safe compared to analgesics in sciatica. In the future, studies with a rigorous study design are required to increase the validity of the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for sciatica.

The clinical outcomes of reni-angiotensin system inhibitors for patients after transcatheter aortic valve replacement: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aims: The objective of our systematic reviews and meta-analysis is to evaluate the clinical outcomes of RAS inhibitors for patients after TAVR. Methods and results: We performed a comprehensive search for Embase, Pubmed, and Cochrane databases from inception to May 1, 2022. The analysis of all outcomes was performed using the random-effects model. In total, 7 articles with a total of 32,585 patients (RAS inhibitor, N = 14,871; Controls, N = 17,714) were included in our study. There was a significantly lower rates of all-cause mortality (RR = 0.76, 95%Cl = 0.68 to 0.86, P < 0.01), cardiovascular death (RR = 0.66, 95%Cl = 0.59-0.74, P < 0.01) and HF readmission (RR = 0.87, 95%Cl = 0.80-0.94, P < 0.01) in patients with RAS inhibitors compared with controls. Patients with RAS inhibitors also had lower rates of all-cause mortality (RR = 0.82, 95%Cl = 0.76-0.89, P < 0.01) and cardiovascular death (RR = 0.73, 95%Cl, 0.62-0.85, P < 0.01) after propensity matching. Conclusions: In conclusion, our systematic reviews and meta-analysis demonstrated that RAS inhibitors could improve the clinical outcomes for patients after TAVR. Further large and high-quality trials should be conducted to support the use of RAS inhibitors for patients after TAVR.

Efficacy of acupuncture for urinary incontinence in middle-aged and elderly women: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to generalize the available evidence and evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture for urinary incontinence in middle-aged and elderly women. METHODS: Six databases including VIP, CNKI, Wan Fang, Web of Science, PubMed and The Cochrane Library were systematically searched to retrieve similar studies updated to December 2019 to gather RCTs regarding the effectiveness of acupuncture for middle-aged and elderly women with urinary incontinence. Two researchers independently performed the whole process of retrieving the studies, extracting the data and assessing the risk of bias of the included studies. The current meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS: A total of eight studies with 607 patients were included in the evaluation. The current meta-analysis showed that Compared with rehabilitation exercise or medication, acupuncture intervention significantly improved the clinical effectiveness (OR = 5.52, 95 % CI, 3.13-9.73), reduced the urine leakage in pad test (SMD = -2.67, 95 % CI, -4.05 to -1.29) and decrease the ICIQ-SF score (MD = -3.46, 95 % CI, -3.69 to -3.22). The results indicated that acupuncture intervention can help the patients alleviate the symptoms effectively. CONCLUSION: Based on this study, acupuncture intervention of stress urinary incontinence in middle-aged and elderly women can improve the clinical effectiveness, reduce the urine leakage in pad test and ICIQ-SF score. More high-quality studies with large sample size are required for further verification.

Pretreatment cerebral microbleeds and symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage post-thrombolysis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are a possible predictor of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) and poor function outcome (PFO). We aimed to investigate the presence of CMBs on increased incidence of sICH and PFO in acute ischemic stroke patients receiving intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) treatment. METHODS: We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library from 1 January 1997 to 13 May 2018, for relevant studies and calculated the pooled relative risk (RR) for the incidence of sICH and PFO in patients with CMBs versus those without after IVT. RESULTS: We included 2407 participants from nine studies. The cumulative sICH incidence was higher in patients with CMBs (6%, 95% CI 4-8%) than that in patients without CMBs (4%, 95% CI 2-6%) with pooled RR 1.51 (95% CI, 1.04-2.21; P = 0.031). Four studies including 1550 patients reported data on 3- to 6-month PFO. The cumulative PFO incidence was higher in patients with CMBs (53%, 95% CI 47-59%) than that in patients without CMBs (41%, 95% CI 36-46%) with pooled RR 1.25 (95% CI 1.11-1.41; P = 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: The pretreatment CMBs were associated with increased incidence of sICH and PFO in acute ischemic stroke patients receiving IVT. However, it was not convincing enough to set the presence of CMBs as contraindication to IVT.

Sleep disturbance in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): a systematic review and meta-analysis of actigraphy studies.

BACKGROUND: Sleep disturbance has been described as a 'hallmark' symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although there are robust findings of self-reported sleep disturbance in PTSD, evidence of sleep disturbance measured using actigraphy is less certain. OBJECTIVE: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine whether there are any significant differences between individuals with and without PTSD in actigraph-derived sleep measures. METHOD: Case-control studies comparing participants with current PTSD to those without PTSD were eligible for inclusion. Sleep parameters of interest were: (1) total sleep time; (2) sleep onset latency; (3) wake after sleep onset (WASO); and (4) sleep efficiency. Data were meta-analysed as standardised mean differences (SMDs) and potential sources of heterogeneity were explored through meta-regression. Six actigraphy studies with 405 participants were included. RESULTS: There was no evidence of a statistically significant difference between those with and without PTSD in total sleep time (SMD 0.09, 95%CI -0.23 to 0.42); WASO (SMD 0.18, 95%CI -0.06 to 0.43); sleep latency (SMD 0.32, 95%CI -0.04 to 0.69); or sleep efficiency (SMD -0.28, 95%CI -0.78 to 0.21). CONCLUSIONS: Further high-quality research is required to determine whether there is a true difference in sleep between those with and without PTSD.

Antecedentes: La perturbación del sueño se ha descrito como un síntoma 'distintivo' del trastorno de estrés postraumático (TEPT). Aunque existen hallazgos sólidos de trastornos del sueño en el TEPT a través de auto-reportes, la evidencia de éstos medidos con el uso de actigrafía es más incierta.Objetivo: Realizar una revisión sistemática y un metanálisis para determinar si hay diferencias significativas entre los individuos con y sin TEPT en medidas de sueño derivadas de la actigrafía.Método: Los estudios de casos y controles incluidos como elegibles fueron aquéllos que compararon participantes con TEPT en curso con aquellos participantes sin TEPT. Los parámetros de sueño de interés fueron: (1) tiempo total del sueño; (2) latencia del inicio del sueño; (3) vigilia después del inicio de sueño (wake after sleep onset, WASO, en su sigla en inglés); y (4) eficiencia del sueño. Los datos fueron meta-analizados como diferencias de medias estandarizadas (DME) y se exploraron las posibles fuentes de heterogeneidad mediante metarregresión. Se incluyeron seis estudios de actigrafía con 405 participantes.Resultados: No hubo evidencia de una diferencia estadísticamente significativa entre aquellos con y sin TEPT en el tiempo total del sueño (DME 0.09, IC 95%: −0,23 a 0,42); WASO (DME 0.18, IC 95% −0.06 a 0.43); latencia del sueño (SMD 0.32, IC 95% −0.04 a 0.69); o eficiencia del sueño (SMD −0.28, IC 95% −0.78 a 0.21).Conclusiones: Se requieren futuras investigaciones de alta calidad para determinar si existe una verdadera diferencia en el sueño entre aquéllos con y sin TEPT.

The impact of the HPV vaccine on the world: initial outcomes and challenges / O impacto da vacina contra o HPV no mundo: resultados iniciais e desafios

Introduction: Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection can be considered an epidemic in the world and in Brazil. This infection accounts for virtually all cases of cervical cancer, most malignant anal, vaginal and oropharyngeal tumors, and a large number of cases of cancer of the penis and vulva. The most effective way to prevent this infection is through vaccination. Several countries, including Brazil, have already introduced this vaccine into the public vaccination programs and are observing the real-life results of decreasing HPV-associated diseases. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of HPV vaccination in preventing virus-induced diseases in countries that have adopted it for a longer time, in a different scenario from clinical studies. Methods: This is a bibliographic review study in journal databases PubMed, LILACS, SciELO and Scopus, with publications dated from 2000 to 2019. The research was restricted to articles in English and Portuguese and studies conducted in humans. Ten studies that were considered relevant were selected. Furthermore, additional articles found by free search were selected. After this phase, the chosen publications were obtained in full for reassessment of their methodology and results. Results: The HPV vaccine demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing the incidence of HPV infection and/or anogenital warts and/or precancerous lesions in the seven countries analyzed by the study: Australia, Brazil, Denmark, United States of America, New Zealand, Czech Republic and Sweden. The impact was bigger in countries that introduced it earlier, such as Australia, where the vaccine virtually eliminated the incidence of genital warts in women aged under 21 years. Although Brazil implemented the vaccine a few years ago, a preliminary study was conducted in Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, where the vaccine was implemented in 2010, showing a 55% reduction in the incidence of genital warts for women aged under 21 years old, between 2007 and 2012. Conclusion: The HPV vaccine is highly effective in protecting against HPV infection and disease in the countries where it has been implemented, with better results than those seen in clinical trials

Introdução: A infecção pelo papilomavírus humano (HPV) pode ser considerada uma epidemia no mundo e no Brasil. Essa infecção responde por virtualmente todos os casos de câncer de colo de útero, pela maioria dos tumores malignos anais, vaginais e orofaríngeos e por um grande número dos casos de câncer de pênis e vulva. A forma mais eficaz de prevenção dessa infecção é por meio da vacinação. Vários países, entre eles o Brasil, já introduziram essa vacina na rede pública e começaram a observar os resultados na vida real de diminuição das doenças HPV induzidas. Objetivo: Avaliar a eficácia da vacinação contra o HPV na prevenção de doenças induzidas pelo vírus em países que a adotaram há mais tempo, em um cenário diferente dos estudos clínicos. Métodos: Estudo de revisão bibliográfica em bases de dados de periódicos PubMed, LILACS, SciELO e Scopus, com publicações no período de 2000 a 2019. A pesquisa restringiu-se a artigos de língua inglesa e portuguesa e com estudos realizados em seres humanos. Foram selecionados dez trabalhos considerados relevantes. Além disso, foram escolhidos artigos adicionais pesquisados por busca livre. Após essa fase, as publicações selecionadas foram obtidas na íntegra para reavaliação da metodologia e dos resultados. Resultados: A vacina contra o HPV demonstrou sua eficácia na redução da incidência de infecção pelo HPV e/ou verrugas anogenitais e/ou lesões pré-cancerosas nos sete países analisados pelo estudo: Austrália, Brasil, Dinamarca, Estados Unidos da América, Nova Zelândia, República Tcheca e Suécia. O impacto foi maior em países que introduziram a vacina mais precocemente, como na Austrália, onde ela virtualmente eliminou a incidência de verrugas genitais em mulheres abaixo de 21 anos. Ainda que o Brasil tenha implementado a vacina há poucos anos, um estudo preliminar foi realizado no município de Campos dos Goytacazes (RJ), onde a vacina foi introduzida em 2010, demonstrando redução na incidência de verrugas genitais em 55% para mulheres abaixo de 21 anos de idade, no período entre 2007 e 2012. Conclusão: A vacina contra o HPV é muito eficaz na proteção contra a infecção e as doenças induzidas pelo HPV nos países em que foi implementada, com resultados melhores que os observados nos ensaios clínicos.