苦参治疗慢性乙型肝炎病毒感染的系统评价研究方案

背景：慢性乙型肝炎病毒（HBV）感染是一个严重的临床和公共卫生问题，目前尚缺乏有效的治疗措施。现有的临床资料显示苦参在治疗慢性HBV感染方面有一定的潜力。目的：系统评估苦参用于治疗慢性HBV感染的有效性和安全性。检索策略，以苦参，苦参素，苦参制剂及其商品名称和乙型肝炎，乙肝病毒，慢性携带状态为主题词，检索Cochrane肝胆病组临床试验资料库，Cochrane补充医学资料库Cochrane图书馆中心数据库，MEDLINE，EMABSE和中国生物医学光盘数据库（CBM）。手工检索了20种中医，及有关学术会议论汇编。鉴定的相关章附录的参考献作为补充检索。资料纳入标准：所有研究苦参治疗慢性HBV感染的随机临床对照试验均被纳入。评价方法，参照Cochrane系统评价的要求，对选择纳入的临床试验进行方法学质量的评估，数据的提取和数据的分析。     

甘草类制剂治疗慢性病毒性肝炎随机对照试验的系统评价研究方案

背景 慢性病毒性肝炎是主要的感染性肝脏疾病,至今尚无满意的治疗药物。甘草治疗慢性肝病有悠久的历史。近代研究表明,甘草类制剂(甘草甜素,强力宁,强力新,甘利欣)治疗慢性乙型肝炎和慢性丙型肝炎具有潜在疗效。目的 评价甘草类制剂治疗慢性肝炎(乙型和丙型)的疗效、安全性和经济性。检索策略 以甘草,甘草甜(素),甘草酸单铰及其商品名甘草甜素、强力宁、强力新和甘草酸二铵及其商品名甘利欣)为主题词,检索Cochrane肝胆病组临床试验资料库、Cochrane补充医学资料库。Cochrane图书馆中心数据库、Medline、EMBASE和中国生物医学光盘数据库(CBM)。手工检索了20种中医杂志,及有关学术会议论文汇编。鉴定的相关文章附录的参考文献作为补充检索。并在英特网上检索正在进行的相关研究。资料纳入标准 所有研究甘草类制剂治疗慢性病毒性肝炎的随机临床对照试验均被纳入。评价方法 参照Cochrane系统评价的要求,对选择纳入的临床试验进行方法学质量的评估、数据的提取和数据的分析。     

甘草类制剂治疗慢性病毒性肝炎随机对照试验的系统评价研究方案

背景 慢性病毒性肝炎是主要的感染性肝脏疾病，至今尚无满意的治疗药物。甘草治疗慢性肝病有悠久的历史，近代研究表明，甘草类制剂（基草甜素，强力新，甘利欣）治疗慢性乙型肝炎和慢性丙型肝炎具有潜在疗效。目的 评价甘草类制剂治疗慢性肝炎（乙型和丙型）的疗效。安全性和经济性。检索策略 以甘草，甘草甜（素），甘草酸单铵及其商品名甘草甜素，强力宁，强力新和甘草酸二铵及其商品名甘利欣）为主题词，检索Cochrane肝胆病组临床试验资料库，Cochrane补充医学资料库，Cochrane图书馆中心数据库，Medline,EMBASE和中国生物医学光盘数据库（CBM），手工检索了20种中医杂志，及有关学术会议论文汇编，鉴定的相关文章附录的参考文献作为补充检索，并在英特网上检索正在进行的相关研究，资料纳入标准 所有研究甘草类制剂治疗慢性病毒性肝炎的随机临床对照试验均被纳入。评价方法 参照Cochrane系统评价的要求，对选择纳入的临床试验进行方法学质量的评估，数据的提取和数据的分析。     

中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎随机对照试验的系统评价

目的 评价中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎的疗效与安全性。设计Cochrane系统评价。研究的鉴定 检索Cochrane肝胆疾病组、Cochrane图书馆、Cochrane另证医学领域试验注册数据库,MEDLINE、EMBASE以及BIOSIS数据库。手工检索发表与未发表的中献。纳入标准 收集比较中草药与安慰剂、未治疗、非特异性治疗或干扰素治疗慢性乙型肝炎并随访达3个月以上的随机与半随机对照试验。中草药联用干扰素与单用干扰素比较的试验也予以纳入。试验无论是否使用盲法或发表语种均不受纳入限制。资料提取与统计方法 两名评价人员独立提取资料。纳入试验的方法学质量采用Jadad评分标准与随机分配隐藏。数据采用Cochrane协作网专用软件RevMan4．1版进行统计分析。结果 九篇随机对照试验共治疗936名病人满足纳入标准。其中仅一篇属于高质量的试验,双盲试验有二篇。回归分析表明存在发表偏倚,“倒漏斗”图（funel plot)显示不对称图形（P＝0．047）。与非特异性治疗或安慰剂比较,扶正解毒汤显示有清除乙型肝炎病毒血清表面抗原（HBsAg)、e抗原（HBeAg)及乙型肝炎病毒（HBV）DNA的疗效;猪苓多糖对清除血清HBsAg与HBV DNA有效;草药叶下珠对清除血清HBeAg有效。复方叶下珠和苦参碱对清除血清HBeAg及HBV DNA及恢复肝功能的效果与干扰素相当。试验未发现严重的副作用。结论 由于存在发表偏倚及普遍低质量的随机对照试验,中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎目前尚无充分的证据。潜在的疗效亟待设计严格的随机双盲安慰剂对照试验予以证实。     

胰腺癌治疗的Cochrane系统评价证据

目的评价胰腺癌治疗的Cochrane系统评价证据,以及纳入系统评价的临床随机对照试验（RCT）的方法学质量。方法检索Cochrane Library数据库（2009年第4期）中有关胰腺癌治疗的系统评价,并运用RewMan5.0.21对所纳入研究的偏倚进行评估。结果共检索到胆道支架置入术姑息治疗梗阻型胰腺癌的系统评价、放化疗治疗不能手术的进展期胰腺癌的系统评价共2篇系统评价,共纳入79个RCT。依照Cochrane协作网推荐的质量评价方法,对所纳入RCT的偏倚进行评估,表明均存在不同程度的偏倚,方法学质量普遍较低。结论 Cochrane系统评价是公认的最高质量的研究证据,但目前缺少足够强度的证据来支持胆道支架置入术姑息治疗梗阻型胰腺癌的疗效。其他治疗手段的疗效如胰腺癌围手术期的营养支持治疗等还需要通过进一步的完成系统评价来评估。建议推行临床试验透明化,实施临床试验注册制度以及按照CONSORT声明严格规范RCT的报告,以便于总结胰腺癌治疗的临床证据。     

中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎随机对照试验的系统评价

目的评价中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎的疗效与安全性.设计Cochrane系统评价.研究的鉴定检索Cochrane肝胆疾病组、Cochrane图书馆、Cochrane另证医学领域试验注册数据库,MEDLINE、EMBASE以及BIOSIS数据库.手工检索发表与未发表的中文文献.纳入标准收集比较中草药与安慰剂、未治疗、非特异性治疗或干扰素治疗慢性乙型肝炎并随访达3个月以上的随机与半随机对照试验.中草药联用干扰素与单用干扰素比较的试验也予以纳入.试验无论是否使用盲法或发表语种均不受纳入限制.资料提取与统计方法两名评价人员独立提取资料.纳入试验的方法学质量采用Jadad评分标准与随机分配隐藏.数据采用Cochrane协作网专用软件RevMan4.1版进行统计分析.结果九篇随机对照试验共治疗936名病人满足纳入标准.其中仅一篇属于高质量的试验,双盲试验有二篇.回归分析表明存在发表偏倚,"倒漏斗”图(funnelplot)显示不对称图形(P=0.047).与非特异性治疗或安慰剂比较,扶正解毒汤显示有清除乙型肝炎病毒血清表面抗原(H-BsAg)、e抗原(HBeAg)及乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)DNA的疗效;猪苓多糖对清除血清H-BsAg与HBVDNA有效;草药叶下珠对清除血清HBeAg有效.复方叶下珠和苦参碱对清除血清HBeAg及HBVDNA及恢复肝功能的效果与干扰素相当.试验未发现严重的副作用.结论由于存在发表偏倚及普遍低质量的随机对照试验,中草药治疗慢性乙型肝炎目前尚无充分的证据.潜在的疗效亟待设计严格的随机双盲安慰剂对照试验予以证实.     

中药复方联合放射疗法治疗鼻咽癌疗效的Meta分析

目的评价中药复方（益气养阴、清热活血方Yiqi Yangyin Qingre Huoxue decoction,YYQHD）联合放射疗法治疗鼻咽癌在减毒增效方面的疗效。方法采用Cochrane系统评价方法,电子检索Cochrane图书馆临床对照试验资料库（Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials,CENTRAL）、PubMed、EMBASE、中国生物医学文献数据库（CBM）、中文科技期刊全文数据库（CNKI）和中国期刊全文数据库（VIP）以及万方数据库等数据库2010年3月前所发表的相关文献。同时互联网检索Current Controlled Trial、Clinical Trials和中国临床试验注册网。手工检索部分肿瘤类核心期刊。采用Cochrane协作网推荐的＂偏倚风险评估＂工具,评估纳入研究的质量,使用RevMan 5.0.23.0软件对纳入的研究进行定量系统评价。结果最终纳入符合标准的中文文献9篇共795例患者。定量分析结果显示：与单纯常规放射治疗相比较,中药复方（YYQHD）联合常规放射治疗能显著提高肿瘤近期疗效、生存率,并且能显著减少放射治疗常见毒副反应的发生,从而提高放射治疗按时完成率确保放射治疗疗效、改善患者生存质量。结论虽现有研究尚不能得出可以将中药复方（YYQHD）作为标准治疗手段辅助放射治疗的结论,但提示益气养阴、清热活血类中药联合放射治疗治疗鼻咽癌是值得继续探索的研究方向,期待设计科学合理、高质量的多中心、大样本、双盲、随机对照临床试验以进一步验证其疗效。     

大黄治疗慢性肾功能衰竭的系统评价

目的评价大黄治疗慢性肾功能衰竭、延缓慢性肾功衰进展的疗效及安全性. 方法计算机检索Medline数据库、Cochrane 图书馆临床对照试验资料库、中国生物医学文献光盘数据库,检索年限从建库～2000年12月.人工检索<中华肾脏病杂志>等15种肾脏病和中医中药的核心杂志,检索年限从1980年1月至2000年12月.查找符合纳入标准的随机/半随机对照试验,进行质量评价,而后提取相关数据进行Meta分析,统计软件用RevMan 4.1. 结果共纳入18篇随机/半随机对照试验,有1 322例病人符合纳入标准,但其方法学质量均较低.与非中药治疗处理相比,大黄治疗慢性肾功能衰竭在降低血肌酐、尿素氮、减轻症状、纠正贫血与营养不良方面有一定疗效.在减少死亡人数 [OR 0.15,95%CI (0.06,0.36), P =0.000]、减少终末期肾病发生 [OR 0.38, 95%CI (0.09,1.64), P =0.19 ] 方面,由于样本例数太少,疗效仍不肯定.结论大黄治疗慢性肾功能衰竭可能有效,但延缓慢性肾功衰进展的作用尚不肯定.还需要设计良好的大规模、多中心随机对照试验做进一步证实.     

霉酚酸酯与环磷酰胺治疗重型狼疮肾炎的Meta分析

目的评价霉酚酸酯与环磷酰胺治疗重型狼疮性肾炎的疗效及安全性。方法电子检索PubMed、EMBASE、Cochrane图书馆临床对照试验资料库、中国期刊全文数据库(CNKI)等数据库,检索霉酚酸酯与环磷酰胺治疗重型狼疮性肾炎的随机对照临床试验,对完全缓解率、部分缓解率、总缓解率、感染、白细胞减少、胃肠道反应、闭经发生率、死亡率及复发率进行Meta分析。结果共12篇文献纳入研究(共925例),Meta分析结果显示霉酚酸酯较环磷酰胺完全缓解率及总缓解率高,同时感染、白细胞减少、闭经的发生,霉酚酸酯较环磷酰胺明显减少,两组间胃肠道反应、复发、死亡率无统计学差异。结论目前分析结果表明霉酚酸酯较传统的环磷酰胺治疗重型狼疮性肾炎疗效好,安全性高。     

黄芪外用对慢性伤口护理效果影响的系统评价

目的:系统评价黄芪外用对慢性伤口的护理效果。方法:计算机检索中国知网全文数据库（CNKI）、万方数据库（Wanfang Data）、维普数据库（VIP）、Web of Science、SinoMed、PubMed、EMbase以及the Cochrane Library中关于黄芪外用对慢性伤口护理疗效的随机对照试验。检索时限均从建库至2021年4月30日,参考Cochrane风险偏倚评估工具对文献质量进行评价,应用RevMan5.3软件对纳入文献进行Meta分析。结果:最终共纳入8篇文献,包含537例慢性伤口病人。Meta分析结果显示,与常规治疗护理相比,黄芪外用可提高慢性伤口愈合有效率[OR=5.66,95%CI(3.44,9.33),P<0.000 01],缩短慢性伤口愈合时间[MD=-12.91,95%CI(-13.70,-12.12),P<0.05],降低慢性伤口治疗后2周血清炎性因子白细胞介素-6(IL-6)浓度[MD=-7.73,95%CI(-13.62,-1.83),P<0.05]。结论:现有证据表明,黄芪外用对慢性伤口有较好的临床护理效果,可提高愈合有...     

中草药治疗乙型肝炎病毒无症状携带者的系统评价

目的评价中草药治疗乙型肝炎病毒无症状携带者的疗效与安全性.设计Cochrane系统评价.研究的鉴定检索Cochrane肝胆疾病组、Cochrane图书馆、Cochrane另证医学领域试验注册数据库,MEDLINE、EMBASE以及BIOSIS数据库.手工检索发表与未发表之中文文献.纳入标准收集比较中草药与安慰剂、未治疗、非特异性治疗或干扰素治疗乙型肝炎病毒无症状携带者并随访达3个月以上的随机临床试验.试验无论是否使用盲法或发表语种均不受纳入限制.资料提取与统计方法两名评价人员独立提取资料.纳入试验的方法学质量采用Jadad评分标准与随机分配隐藏.数据采用Cochrane协作网专用软件RevMan4.1版进行统计分析.结果3篇共涉及307名病人随访达3个月及以上的随机临床试验符合纳入标准.均为低质量试验.健脾温肾方与干扰素比较对清除乙型肝炎病毒具有显著效果清除乙型肝炎病毒血清表面抗原(HBsAg)相对危险度为2.40(95%可信区间1.01～5.72),血清e抗原(HBeAg)转化为e抗体的效应为2.54(1.13～5.70).草药叶下珠和黄芪与安慰剂比较未见显著的抗病毒效果.对8个随访少于3个月的随机临床试验的分析表明中草药对病毒标志物无显著疗效.试验未发现严重的副作用.结论由于小样本及低质量的随机对照试验,中草药治疗乙型肝炎病毒携带者的证据无够充分.需要进一步的随机双盲安慰剂对照试验.     

A systematic review of Chinese medicinal herbs for acute bronchitis

OBJECTIVES: To assess the effectiveness and safety of Chinese medicinal herbs for treating uncomplicated acute bronchitis. DATA SOURCES: We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), which includes the Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group's specialized register; The Chinese Cochrane Centre's Controlled Trials Register; MEDLINE; EMBASE; and the Chinese Biomedical Database (CBM). METHODS: We only included randomized controlled trials. At least two authors extracted data and assessed trial quality. MAIN RESULTS: Four trials reported the time to improvement of cough, fever, and rales associated with bronchitis and showed that patients treated with Chinese herbs had a shorter duration of signs and symptoms. Two trials reported the proportion of patients with improved signs and symptoms at follow-up and showed that Chinese herbs were beneficial in terms of relief of signs and symptoms. Thirteen (13) trials analyzed the data on physician global assessment of improvement at follow-up. Nine (9) of 13 trials showed that Chinese herbs were superior to routine treatment and the other four trials showed a similar effect to routine treatment. In general, Chinese herbs appeared beneficial. Only one trial reported adverse effects during treatment. CONCLUSIONS: There are insufficient quality data to recommend the routine use of Chinese herbs for acute bronchitis. The benefit found in this systematic review could be due to publication bias and study-design limitations of the individual studies. In addition, the safety of Chinese herbs is unknown due to the lack of toxicological evidence on these Chinese herbs, though adverse events are rarely reported.     

Role of lamivudine in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus infection.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the evidence regarding the therapeutic effectiveness of lamivudine in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in immunocompetent patients. DATA SOURCES: Using chronic hepatitis B and lamivudine as MeSH headings, MEDLINE was searched from 1966 to September 1998 for all published randomized controlled trials evaluating lamivudine in chronic HBV infection. Relevant articles from selected bibliographies were also retrieved. STUDY SELECTION: Only randomized, single- and double-blind trials in human HBV carriers published in the English language were included. DATA SYNTHESIS: Evidence from the controlled trials suggests that lamivudine has a therapeutic effect in suppressing HBV replication in immunocompetent patients. Lamivudine 100 mg/d appears to suppress HBV replication in as many as 97% of patients within two weeks after the initiation of therapy and is capable of suppressing histologic damages. However, viral suppression is effective only during the therapy; on discontinuation of lamivudine therapy, most patients return to the pretreatment condition. Viral resistance to lamivudine has been observed. Most patients with chronic HBV infection appear to tolerate 100 mg/d of lamivudine therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence has shown that oral lamivudine 100 mg/d will produce rapid and significant suppression of viral replication in immunocompetent patients with chronic HBV infections. Treatment periods up to one year have been effective and well tolerated. The suppression of viral replication may not be sustained after cessation of lamivudine therapy, and very few patients have complete elimination of HBV during therapy. Therefore, long treatment periods may be necessary. Efficacy and tolerability of treatment beyond one year need to be investigated. Resistance to lamivudine has been reported in patients receiving therapy. A combination anti-HBV regimen using lamivudine and other agents with different mechanisms of action should be investigated to maximize the elimination of the viral infection while minimizing or preventing damage to the liver cells and tissues and the development of viral resistance.     

苦参素治疗慢性乙型肝炎的系统评价

目的系统评价苦参素治疗慢性乙型肝炎的效果和安全性。方法采用Cochrane系统评价方法，检索肝胆病组临床试验数据库、CENTRAL、PubMed、EMbase、CBMdisc、CNKI等电子资料库。由2名评价者共同评价纳入研究质量，对同质研究进行Meta分析。结果共纳入56个研究，5156例慢性乙肝患者。3篇为完全随机设计，7篇为半随机设计，46篇未描述具体的随机方法。所有文献均未描述分配隐藏的方法，仅1篇文献实施盲法。按测量指标和干预措施进行亚组分析，在所有结局指标中，除治疗结束后12个月随访时干扰素HBeAg阴转率优于苦参素，差异有统计学意义[RR=0.72，95％CI（0.58，0.90）]，及苦参素与拉米呋定比较，治疗12周、24周时HBVDNA阴转率低于拉米呋定组，差异有统计学意义外[RR=0.48，95％CI（0.33，0.70）；RR=0．40，95％CI（0．26，0.63）]，其它指标均为阴性结果。结论现有临床证据表明，苦参素治疗慢性乙型肝炎对肝纤维化、病毒学指标、病毒学应答、ALT复常率可能有效，且无严重的不良反应。但由于本系统评价所纳入的文献研究用药时间不同，因此无法进行总体的效应合并分析，对整体效果还需要更为大量的文献支持。     

Efficacy and safety of aminoglycoside monotherapy: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to compare the efficacy and adverse effects of any aminoglycoside as a single antibiotic with other antibiotics for the treatment of patients with infection. METHODS: Systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis. We searched for randomized controlled trials comparing the efficacy of single aminoglycoside antibiotic treatment with one or more non-aminoglycoside antibiotic for patients with infection in the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, databases of ongoing trials and conference proceedings. Two reviewers assessed trial eligibility, quality and extracted data. Pooled relative risks (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for dichotomous data. RESULTS: The search yielded 37 trials of which 26 included patients with urinary tract infection. Aminoglycosides were equally effective as comparators in the analysis of the primary outcomes, all-cause mortality (RR 1.11, 95% CI 0.68, 1.81, 9 trials, 503 patients) and treatment failure (RR 1.10, 95% CI 0.96, 1.27, 32 trials, 1890 patients). Aminoglycosides were associated with a significantly higher rate of bacteriological failure at end of therapy (RR 1.44, 95% CI 1.21, 1.72, 27 trials, 1668 patients). Subgroup analyses according to quality of trial, type of antibiotics, source of infection and rate of clinical sepsis did not alter the outcomes. Less adverse effects in total but more nephrotoxic effects were observed in patients treated with aminoglycosides. CONCLUSIONS: The present data support the use of aminoglycosides for urinary tract infections. The paucity of trials including patients with sepsis or reporting on mortality precludes firm recommendations for patients with infections other than of the urinary tract.     

甲基维生素B12治疗糖尿病周围神经病变的系统评价

目的了解甲基维生素B12治疗糖尿病周围神经病变的疗效和安全性.方法按照国际Cochrane协作网的系统评价方法,检索全世界关于甲基维生素B12治疗糖尿病周围神经病变的随机或半随机对照试验,包括Cochrane 图书馆2003年第4期、临床对照试验资料库、MEDLINE、EMBASE、中国生物医学文献光盘数据库、中文科技期刊全文数据库以及所有纳入研究的参考文献.由两位评价者独立地对符合纳入标准的试验进行质量评价和资料提取.采用下列指标对甲基维生素B12治疗糖尿病周围神经病变的疗效和安全性进行评价:临床症状体征的总有效率、感觉及运动神经传导速度以及严重不良反应的发生率.结果 30个试验共纳入1 949例糖尿病周围神经病变患者.大部分试验的方法学质量较低.甲基维生素B12与其他B族维生素比较的13个试验的"漏斗图"图分析显示基本对称,提示发表偏倚的可能性较小,结果比较可靠,但是不一定能代表整体发表偏倚情况.Meta分析结果显示:甲基维生素B12可明显改善糖尿病周围神经病变的临床症状和体征,且疗效优于其他B族维生素;甲基维生素B12改善某些周围神经传导速度的疗效优于其他B族维生素;在治疗期间,试验未发现严重不良反应. 结论甲基维生素B12可能是一种相对安全和有效的治疗糖尿病周围神经病变的药物.但由于纳入试验的方法学质量低下和可能存在发表偏倚,证据强度不足,尚有待大样本、高质量的多中心随机双盲对照试验加以证实.     

Etoricoxib: a highly selective COX-2 inhibitor

OBJECTIVE: To review the available literature evaluating the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, clinical efficacy, and adverse effects of etoricoxib, a highly selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor that is not currently approved for use in the US. DATA SOURCES: Literature retrieval was accessed through MEDLINE (1966-December 2004), Current Contents (1998-December 2004), and Cochrane Library (4th quarter 2004). References from retrieved articles, information from the manufacturer, and abstracts from the American College of Rheumatology and Annual European Congress of Rheumatology meetings were searched. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION: All clinical trials published in English evaluating etoricoxib were included in this review. An abstract was excluded if it presented preliminary data from trials that are now published, analyzed data previously reported in a published clinical trial, or compared etoricoxib with placebo for an indication with published active-comparator controlled trials. DATA SYNTHESIS: Twelve clinical trials evaluating efficacy were reviewed. Efficacy for acute pain has been evaluated in acute gout, primary dysmenorrhea, and dental surgery and for chronic pain in rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and chronic lower back pain. For safety, 3 clinical trials and 6 retrospective analyses of gastrointestinal, renovascular, or cardiovascular adverse effects were reviewed. CONCLUSIONS: Available studies demonstrate the efficacy of etoricoxib compared with nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, but no published studies to date have compared etoricoxib with other selective COX-2 inhibitors. While these agents have demonstrated a significant reduction in gastrointestinal adverse effects, the cardiovascular adverse effects of selective COX-2 inhibition are not well defined. Further study is necessary to delineate the benefits and risks of etoricoxib compared with alternative treatment regimens.     

Acupuncture for Chronic Pain: Update of an Individual Patient Data Meta-Analysis

Despite wide use in clinical practice, acupuncture remains a controversial treatment for chronic pain. Our objective was to update an individual patient data meta-analysis to determine the effect size of acupuncture for 4 chronic pain conditions. We searched MEDLINE and the Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials randomized trials published up until December 31, 2015. We included randomized trials of acupuncture needling versus either sham acupuncture or no acupuncture control for nonspecific musculoskeletal pain, osteoarthritis, chronic headache, or shoulder pain. Trials were only included if allocation concealment was unambiguously determined to be adequate. Raw data were obtained from study authors and entered into an individual patient data meta-analysis. The main outcome measures were pain and function. An additional 13 trials were identified, with data received for a total of 20,827 patients from 39 trials. Acupuncture was superior to sham as well as no acupuncture control for each pain condition (all P?<?.001) with differences between groups close to .5 SDs compared with no acupuncture control and close to .2 SDs compared with sham. We also found clear evidence that the effects of acupuncture persist over time with only a small decrease, approximately 15%, in treatment effect at 1 year. In secondary analyses, we found no obvious association between trial outcome and characteristics of acupuncture treatment, but effect sizes of acupuncture were associated with the type of control group, with smaller effects sizes for sham controlled trials that used a penetrating needle for sham, and for trials that had high intensity of intervention in the control arm. We conclude that acupuncture is effective for the treatment of chronic pain, with treatment effects persisting over time. Although factors in addition to the specific effects of needling at correct acupuncture point locations are important contributors to the treatment effect, decreases in pain after acupuncture cannot be explained solely in terms of placebo effects. Variations in the effect size of acupuncture in different trials are driven predominantly by differences in treatments received by the control group rather than by differences in the characteristics of acupuncture treatment.

Traditional Chinese manual acupuncture for management of obesity: A systematic review

AIM: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for the treatment of obesity by reviewing currently available randomised controlled trials. METHODS: This review followed the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Fifteen English and three Chinese databases were searched from their respective inceptions until July 2014. Key words used in the search consisted of acupuncture, needles, obesity, overweight, randomised trial and their synonyms. The risk of bias of included studies was assessed. The differences in effect size between acupuncture and control (including sham, no treatment, western medicine and dietary therapy/exercise) groups were compared using Cochrane Collaboration’s RevMan 5.3 software. RESULTS: Two thousand six hundred and twenty-one records were identified; after full-text articles assessed for eligibility, 9 of them met inclusion criteria. Majority of included studies had unclear or high risk of bias across all domains. All included studies had high or unclear risk of bias in randomisation, blinding and outcome data. Meta-analysis showed that acupuncture was more effective for reducing body weight and body mass index than no treatment group. Manual acupuncture was also superior to dietary therapy alone for decreasing body weight. With dietary therapy as co-intervention, combined acupuncture group achieved lower body mass index than combined sham acupuncture group or dietary therapy alone group at the end of treatment period. No severe adverse events from acupuncture group were reported from all included studies. CONCLUSION: Due to the poor quality of included studies the effectiveness of acupuncture cannot be concluded. Better-designed, large-scale, randomised, sham-controlled clinical trials with long-term follow-up are needed.