Physical therapy interventions for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee: an overview of systematic reviews

Patients with osteoarthritis of the knee are commonly treated by physical therapists. Practice should be informed by updated evidence from systematic reviews. The purpose of this article is to summarize the evidence from systematic reviews on the effectiveness of physical therapy for patients with knee osteoarthritis. Systematic reviews published between 2000 and 2007 were identified by a comprehensive literature search. We graded the quality of evidence across reviews for each comparison and outcome. Twenty-three systematic reviews on physical therapy interventions for patients with knee osteoarthritis were included. There is high-quality evidence that exercise and weight reduction reduce pain and improve physical function in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. There is moderate-quality evidence that acupuncture, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, and low-level laser therapy reduce pain and that psychoeducational interventions improve psychological outcomes. For other interventions and outcomes, the quality of evidence is low or there is no evidence from systematic reviews.     

Theories of motivation in occupational therapy: an overview

The motivational theories behind five theoretical approaches in occupational therapy that claim to be generic are explained. With the exception of the occupational behavior approach, the motivational perspectives are only implied features of the following other occupational therapy approaches discussed: object relations analysis, action consequence approach, recapitulation of ontogenesis, and developmental facilitation. These motivational explanations are developed and then applied to a case example. Finally, the occupational therapy approaches are analyzed in terms of the viability of their motivational perspectives to determine their adequacy as generic approaches for the profession.     

Manual therapy for neck pain: an overview of randomized clinical trials and systematic reviews

Manual therapy for neck pain enjoys a long history, with increasing popularity in recent times. The evidence base for manual therapies for neck pain consists of a reasonably large body of clinical trials, an even greater number of systematic reviews and, more recently, a number of practice guidelines. We have conducted several systematic reviews pertaining to the evidence base for both acute and chronic neck pain as well as for the outcome of control groups of chronic neck pain subjects in clinical trials of conservative therapies. In this review, we first provide background material on the definition and characterization of manual therapies as well as on the epidemiology of neck pain. We then review our recent systematic reviews on manual therapies for acute and chronic neck pain without whiplash. Finally, we provide brief, original reviews of, first, the literature on the treatment of whiplash injury by manual therapies followed by the current practice guidelines pertaining to manual therapies for neck pain. While there are several publications, especially those registered with the Cochrane Collaboration, that are currently the authoritative evaluations of the use of manual therapies for neck pain, the present review is designed to present a broad overview of the topic with a distinctive approach emphasizing the analysis of change scores in the clinical trials. It is hoped that this will benefit researchers and clinicians alike in their management of neck pain patients.     

The efficacy of manual therapy and exercise for different stages of non-specific low back pain: an update of systematic reviews

Objective:

to review and update the evidence for different forms of manual therapy (MT) for patients with different stages of non-specific low back pain (LBP).

Data sources:

MEDLINE, Cochrane-Register-of-Controlled-Trials, PEDro, EMBASE.

Method:

A systematic review of MT with a literature search covering the period of January 2000 to April 2013 was conducted by two independent reviewers according to Cochrane and PRISMA guidelines. A total of 360 studies were evaluated using qualitative criteria. Two stages of LBP were categorized; combined acute–subacute and chronic. Further sub-classification was made according to MT intervention: MT1 (manipulation); MT2 (mobilization and soft-tissue-techniques); and MT3 (MT1 combined with MT2). In each sub-category, MT could be combined or not with exercise or usual medical care (UMC). Consequently, quantitative evaluation criteria were applied to 56 eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and hence 23 low-risk of bias RCTs were identified for review. Only studies providing new updated information (11/23 RCTs) are presented here.

Results:

Acute–subacute LBP: STRONG-evidence in favour of MT1 when compared to sham for pain, function and health improvements in the short-term (1–3 months). MODERATE-evidence to support MT1 and MT3 combined with UMC in comparison to UMC alone for pain, function and health improvements in the short-term.

Chronic LBP:

MODERATE to STRONG-evidence in favour of MT1 in comparison to sham for pain, function and overall-health in the short-term. MODERATE-evidence in favour of MT3 combined with exercise or UMC in comparison to exercise and back-school was established for pain, function and quality-of-life in the short and long-term. LIMITED-evidence in favour of MT2 combined with exercise and UMC in comparison to UMC alone for pain and function from short to long-term. LIMITED-evidence of no effect for MT1 with extension-exercise compared to extension-exercise alone for pain in the short to long-term.

Conclusion:

This systematic review updates the evidence for MT with exercise or UMC for different stages of LBP and provides recommendations for future studies.     

太极预防老年跌倒的系统评价再评价

目的评估太极预防老年跌倒相关系统评价的方法学质量及其结局指标的证据质量。方法计算机检索PubMed、Web of Science、The Cochrane Library、EMbase、CNKI、WanFang Data、CBM和VIP数据库,收集太极预防老年跌倒相关系统评价/Meta分析,采用AMSTAR 2工具评价所纳入系统评价的方法学质量,并依据GRADE系统进一步对所纳入系统评价的结局指标进行证据质量分级。结果共纳入11篇系统评价/Meta分析,AMSTAR 2评价结果显示10篇研究方法学质量为极低,1篇为低;GRADE评价结果显示纳入的36个结局指标中,10个结局指标质量为中,20个为低,6个为极低。中等质量的结局指标结果显示,太极组在单腿站立时间[MD=5.33,95%CI(3.35,7.32),P<0.01;WMD=1.76,95%CI(-7.00,10.52),P<0.01]、起立-行走试验[MD=1.04,95%CI(0.67,1.41),P<0.01]、Berg平衡量表评分[MD=2.18,95%CI(0.93,3.43),P<0.01]、总跌倒次数[RR=0.82,95%CI(0.73,0.92),P<0.01]、跌倒2次的发生率[OR=0.69,95%CI(0.49,0.97),P<0.01]和跌倒3次的发生率[OR=0.39,95%CI(0.21,0.73),P<0.01]方面均优于对照组。结论目前太极预防老年跌倒的相关系统评价方法学质量较低,证据质量可靠程度一般,无法证实太极能有效预防老年跌倒,有待未来开展更多高质量研究证实。     

临床决策辅助系统减少药物差错的系统评价再评价

目的对临床决策辅助系统应用于药物差错、药物安全领域的系统评价(SR)进行再评价。方法计算机检索PubMed、EMbase、The Cochrane Library、CBM、WanFang Data、VIP和CNKI数据库,搜集临床决策辅助系统应用于药物差错、药物安全领域的SR,检索时限均从1996年1月至2018年11月。由2名研究者独立筛选文献、提取资料后,采用AMSTAR标准评价纳入SR的方法学质量。结果共纳入20个SR,包括256 980名医务工作者和1 683 675名患者。纳入的SR中,高质量4个、中等质量16个。19个SR报告了多个过程结局指标:9个有充分证据证明临床决策辅助系统对过程结局有积极影响,6个证据有限,7个尚无充分证据。13个SR报告了患者结局:仅1个有充分证据证明临床决策辅助系统对患者结局有积极影响,3个证据有限,9个尚无充分证据。结论现有临床决策辅助系统减少药物差错的SR方法学质量为中到高等。临床决策辅助系统可显著改善与药物相关的过程结局;但对患者结局的影响目前仅有1个SR充分证据支持,结论尚不能确定,仍需大样本,长期随访的研究来证实。     

中药治疗心房颤动的系统评价再评价

目的对中药治疗心房颤动的系统评价进行再评价。方法计算机检索PubMed、The Cochrane Library、EMbase、CNKI、CBM、WanFang Data和VIP数据库,搜集中药治疗心房颤动的系统评价(SR),检索时限均为建库至2019年7月。由2名研究员独立筛选和提取资料后,应用AMSTAR2量表、PRISMA声明和GRADE方法对纳入研究的方法学质量、报告质量和证据质量进行评价。结果最终纳入20个SR,其中15个合并分析了临床疗效,12个对不良反应进行了分析。纳入SR的AMSTAR2方法学质量评价整体偏低,评价为高质量的0篇,低质量1篇,极低质量19篇;得分较差的条目为条目2、7、8、9、10、12、13、14、16。纳入SR的PRISMA得分在14~22.5分之间,报告质量问题主要表现在方案与注册、资料条目、其他分析方法和资金来源方面。采用GRADE进行结局指标证据体评价,证据体质量普遍较低。结论中药治疗房颤可提高临床疗效,减少不良反应,但所纳入文献整体方法学质量不高,证据体质量普遍偏低,建议进一步开展高质量临床研究,为评价中药治疗房颤临床疗效提供依据。     

Acupuncture for treatment of anxiety,an overview of systematic reviews

PurposeTo evaluate the methodological quality and summarize evidence of important outcomes of systematic reviews (SRs)/Meta analyses (MAs) of acupuncture for anxiety.MethodsWe conducted a comprehensive literature search for SRs/MAs in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, Chinese Biomedical Databases (CBM), Wanfang database and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) until November 30, 2018. Three reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of the reviews according to the Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR-2), the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) was used to rate the quality of evidence. In the pre-experiment, we used the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) to assess reviewer agreement, the ICC value for overall score was 0.978.ResultsTen reviews were included. The assessment results of AMSTAR-2 showed that the methodological quality of all included studies was critically low. The lowest score were item “provide a list of excluded studies and justify the exclusions” and item “report sources of funding for the included studies”, none of studies provided information about the above two items, followed by the “providing a priori design” item with only two (20%) studies conforming to this item. For GRADE, of the 7 outcomes, high quality evidence was provided in only 1 (14.3%), moderate in 2 (28.6.7%), and low in 4 (57.1%).ConclusionAlthough most of the included reviews indicated that acupuncture group was more effective than control group in the treatment of anxiety, more importantly, the methodological quality of the included reviews and the quality of evidence were low. More high-quality evidence is needed to determine whether acupuncture is more effective than other treatments.     

Effect of acupuncture in eczema: An overview of systematic reviews

BackgroundEczema is a common chronic relapsing inflammatory skin disease, which is characterized by intense itching. Acupuncture can be effective for eczema, and it is thus regarded as a common complementary treatment.ObjectiveThe intention of this overview is to methodically appraise and synthesize evidence about systematic reviews/meta-analyses (SRs/MAs) on acupuncture in eczema.MethodsWe searched for SRs/MAs of acupuncture with eczema in eight databases. We evaluated the methodological quality by Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR-2), the reporting quality with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA 2020 Checkist), and the evidence quality according to the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system.ResultsA total of 7 SRs/MAs were included. According to AMSTAR-2, all the SRs/MAs included were categorized as critically low-quality. According to the PRISMA 2020 checklist, none of the reviews completed all the 27 items, thus their compliance was relatively weak. On the base of GRADE system, 2 of the 12 outcomes were rated as moderate, and 5 outcomes were rated as low-quality, while the others were regarded as very low-quality.ConclusionCompared with the control group, the included reviews of the acupuncture group were more effective and safer; however, the conclusion should be treated cautiously because the quality of evidence was not high enough to support it. In order to improve the quality, more rigorous, standardized, and comprehensive SRs/MAs need designing in the future.     

Ginger for health care: An overview of systematic reviews

ObjectivesTo summarize the evidence from systematic reviews (SRs) and meta-analyses that evaluated the efficacy of ginger in treating any conditions and critically assess the quality of these evidence.MethodsA systematic search of the literature was conducted from inception until February 28, 2019 using the PubMed, EMBASE, Web of science, Cochrane library, and four Chinese databases. Literature selection and data extraction were conducted by two independent reviewers. The quality of SRs was evaluated using the AMSTAR-2 tool. The GRADE system was used to assess the quality of evidence.ResultsTwenty-seven SRs were included. The number of included studies were various, range from 3 to 27. The condition with the most included SRs was nausea and vomiting (n = 12, 44.4%). Many SRs showed a promising efficacy of ginger, including nausea and vomiting, metabolic syndrome and pain, while the effect of ginger for platelet aggregation failed to draw a certain conclusion. The quality of SRs was heterogeneous. All of included SRs well complied with the Item 1 (“research questions included the components of PICO”) and Item 3 (“explained selection of the study designs for inclusion”). Twenty review failed to provide registration information. Only one SR reported the sources of funding for studies included.ConclusionsIn our overview, most of SRs suggest ginger is a promising herbal medicine for health care, which is beneficial for nausea and vomiting, metabolic syndrome and pain. However, considering the limited quality of included evidence and heterogeneity of different clinical trials, more well-design studies are required to confirm the conclusion further.     

远程心脏康复有效性及依从性的系统评价再评价

目的 对远程心脏康复的有效性及依从性进行系统评价再评价。方法 计算机检索中国知网、万方数据库、维普数据库、中国生物医学文献数据库、澳大利亚乔安娜布里格斯研究所（Joanna Briggs Institute,JBI）循证卫生保健中心数据库、British Medical Journal最佳临床实践、Cochrane Library、PubMed、Embase、CINAHL数据库以及PROSPERO注册平台有关远程心脏康复的系统评价，检索时限为2012年2月—2022年10月，由2名研究者独立完成纳入文献的质量评价、资料提取。结果 共纳入14篇系统评价，其中2篇质量等级为中，6篇质量等级为低，6篇质量为极低。重新Meta分析结果显示，应用通信技术、智能手机应用程序、可穿戴设备等的远程辅助措施可有效改善患者心肺功能、运动能力和生活质量等，但虚拟现实技术效果有待进一步验证。结论 远程辅助可以提高心脏康复的有效性及依从性，但系统评价的方法学和证据的质量均较低，且多基于国外研究，证据应用时需进行本土化调试，并开展符合中国国情的高质量研究。     

Acupuncture for treatment of insomnia: An overview of systematic reviews

PurposeTo evaluate the reliability of the methodological quality and outcome measures of systematic review (SR) /meta-analysis (MA) of acupuncture for insomnia.MethodsWe conducted a comprehensive literature search for SRs with MAs in seven international and Chinese databases. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of the reviews according to the Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR-2), the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) was used to rate the quality of evidence.ResultsThirty-four reviews were included. The AMSTAR-2 score showed that most of the included studies were of low methodological quality and included only two high-quality literatures. The lowest score were the item 10 (all the studies didn't report on the sources of funding for the studies included in the review), item 7(32 studies didn't provide a list of excluded studies and justify the exclusions) and item 3 (27 studies didn't explain their selection of the study designs for inclusion in the review).ConclusionMost of the reviews included suggested that the acupuncture group was more effective than the control group in the treatment of insomnia, but the methodological quality of most of the studies and the quality of evidence were low.     

Non-pharmacological interventions for spasticity in adults: An overview of systematic reviews

ObjectivesSpasticity causes significant long-term disability-burden, requiring comprehensive management. This review evaluates evidence from published systematic reviews of clinical trials for effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for improved spasticity outcomes.MethodsData sources: a literature search was conducted using medical and health science electronic (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PubMed, and the Cochrane Library) databases for published systematic reviews up to 15th June 2017. Data extraction and synthesis: two reviewers applied inclusion criteria to select potential systematic reviews, independently extracted data for methodological quality using Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR). Quality of evidence was critically appraised with Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE).ResultsOverall 18 systematic reviews were evaluated for evidence for a range of non-pharmacological interventions currently used in managing spasticity in various neurological conditions. There is “moderate” evidence for electro-neuromuscular stimulation and acupuncture as an adjunct therapy to conventional routine care (pharmacological and rehabilitation) in persons following stroke. “Low” quality evidence for rehabilitation programs targeting spasticity (such as induced movement therapy, stretching, dynamic elbow-splinting, occupational therapy) in stroke and other neurological conditions; extracorporeal shock-wave therapy in brain injury; transcranial direct current stimulation in stroke; transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for other neurological conditions; physical activity programs and repetitive magnetic stimulation in persons with MS, vibration therapy for SCI and stretching for other neurological condition. For other interventions, evidence was inconclusive.ConclusionsDespite the available range of non-pharmacological interventions for spasticity, there is lack of high-quality evidence for many modalities. Further research is needed to judge the effect with appropriate study designs, timing and intensity of modalities, and associate costs of these interventions.     

The effects of exercise therapy on adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: An overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

BackgroundExercise therapy was suggested as an appealing treatment option for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) patients with less side effects, lower economic costs, and more psychological benefits. Nevertheless, no unanimous findings about the efficacy of exercise therapy have been obtained from previous systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses.ObjectiveTo provide an overview of previous systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses on the effectiveness of exercise therapy on AIS treatment.MethodsSystematic searches in Medline, Eric, CINAHL, Embase, SPORTDiscus, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library for systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), non-randomized comparison studies (NRS) or observational studies using exercise as an intervention, and with outcome measures including Cobb angle, angle of trunk rotation (ATR), and quality of life. The methodological quality of the review articles was evaluated by A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews (AMSTAR) checklist.ResultsTen systematic reviews and meta-analyses were included. The quality of most of the review articles is moderate with a mean score of 6/11 on the AMSTAR scale. Overall, there is increasing evidence showing the efficacy of exercise therapy on reducing the Cobb angle and angle of trunk rotation, and improving perceived quality of life.ConclusionExercise therapy was found to have potential benefits to treat physiological and psychological aspects of AIS patients. However, the findings were not conclusive given that some reviews relied on data from the trials with potential risk of bias and significant heterogeneity. More high-quality research is still needed to verify these findings.     

Interventions for the treatment of trachoma: An overview of Cochrane systematic reviews

Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. Infection with C. trachomatis produces characteristic changes to the inner surface of the eyelids, resulting in sequela that when left untreated, leads to vision impairment and blindness. Repeated trachoma infections can cause severe scarring of the inside of the eyelid and can cause the eyelashes to scratch the cornea (trichiasis). The objective of this overview was to synthesize the evidence from Cochrane systematic reviews regarding the treatment of trachoma, and to provide a brief and user‐friendly front end for health professionals, researchers and policy makers. Face washing plus topical tetracycline eye ointment gave no additional protective benefit against active trachoma when compared with topical tetracycline eye ointment alone. Nor was any benefit conferred in the presence of severe trachoma. Primary health‐care education was found to be effective in reducing the odds of active trachoma. Evidence of benefit from insecticide spray or provision of latrines away from living areas was inconclusive for active trachoma. Surgical interventions that involve full‐thickness incision with tarsal rotation are more effective than alternate surgical procedures.     

Methodology for the systematic reviews on occupational therapy for adults with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias

Systematic reviews of literature relevant to adults with Alzheimer's disease and their families are important to the practice of occupational therapy. We describe the seven questions that served as the focus for systematic reviews of the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions for adults with Alzheimer's disease and their families. We include the background for the reviews; the process followed for each question, including search terms and search strategy; the databases searched; and the methods used to summarize and critically appraise the literature. The final number of articles included in each systematic review; a summary of the results; the strengths and limitations of the findings; and implications for practice, education, and research are presented for the six questions addressing interventions in the areas of occupation, perception, environment, activity demands, fall prevention, and caregiver strategies.