TrialPanorama/TrialPanorama-benchmark huggingface dataset:
Background: Bacterial infections are a frequent complication in patients with cirrhosis and upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Antibiotic prophylaxis seems to decrease the incidence of bacterial infections. Oral antibiotics, active against enteric bacteria, have been commonly used as antibiotic prophylaxis in patients with cirrhosis and upper gastrointestinal bleeding. This is an update of a Cochrane review first published in 2002.
Objectives: To assess the benefits and harms of antibiotic prophylaxis in cirrhotic patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Selection criteria: Randomised clinical trials comparing different types of antibiotic prophylaxis with no intervention, placebo, or another antibiotic to prevent bacterial infections in cirrhotic patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Background: Incomplete miscarriage is a major problem that should be effectively managed with safe and appropriate procedures. Surgical evacuation of the uterus for management of incomplete miscarriage usually involves vacuum aspiration or sharp curettage.
Objectives: To compare the safety and effectiveness of surgical uterine evacuation methods for management of incomplete miscarriage.
Selection criteria: Randomized trials where different surgical methods were used to manage incomplete miscarriage were eligible for inclusion.
Background: Acute otitis media (AOM) is a common illness during childhood, for which antibiotics are frequently prescribed.
Objectives: To determine the effectiveness of a short course of antibiotics (less than seven days) in comparison to a long course of antibiotics (seven days or greater) for the treatment of AOM in children.
Selection criteria: Trials were included if they met the following criteria: participants aged one month to 18 years; clinical diagnosis of ear infection; no previous antimicrobial therapy; and randomisation to treatment with less than seven days versus seven days or more of antibiotics.
Background: Public policy makers and benefit plan managers need to restrain rising pharmaceutical drug costs while preserving access and optimizing health benefits.
Objectives: To determine the effects of a pharmaceutical policy restricting the reimbursement of selected medications on drug use, health care utilization, health outcomes and costs (expenditures).
Selection criteria: Included were studies of pharmaceutical policies that restrict coverage and reimbursement of selected drugs or drug classes, often using additional patient specific information related to health status or need. We included randomised controlled trials, non-randomised controlled trials, interrupted time series (ITS) analyses, repeated measures studies and controlled before-after studies set in large care systems or jurisdictions.
Background: Induction of labour is carried out for a variety of indications and using a range of pharmacological, mechanical and other methods. For women at low risk, some methods of induction of labour may be suitable for use in outpatient settings.
Objectives: To examine pharmacological and mechanical interventions to induce labour in outpatient settings in terms of feasibility, effectiveness, maternal satisfaction, healthcare costs and, where information is available, safety. The review complements existing reviews on labour induction examining effectiveness and safety.
Selection criteria: We included randomised controlled trials examining outpatient cervical ripening or induction of labour with pharmacological agents or mechanical methods.
Background: Antisocial personality disorder (AsPD) is associated with a wide range of disturbance including persistent rule-breaking, criminality, substance misuse, unemployment, homelessness and relationship difficulties.
Objectives: To evaluate the potential beneficial and adverse effects of pharmacological interventions for people with AsPD.
Selection criteria: Controlled trials in which participants with AsPD were randomly allocated to a pharmacological intervention and a placebo control condition. Two trials comparing one drug against another without a placebo control are reported separately.
Background: Dislocation of the acromioclavicular joint is one of the most common shoulder problems in general orthopaedic practice. The question of whether surgery should be used remains controversial.
Objectives: To assess the relative effects of surgical versus conservative (non-surgical) interventions for treating acromioclavicular dislocations in adults.
Selection criteria: All randomised and quasi-randomised trials that compared surgical with conservative treatment of acromioclavicular dislocation in adults were included.
Background: Magnesium sulphate remains the drug of choice for both prevention and treatment of women with eclampsia. Regimens for administration of this drug have evolved over the years, but have not yet been formally evaluated.
Objectives: To assess the comparative effects of alternative regimens for the administration of magnesium sulphate when used for the care of women with pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, or both.
Selection criteria: Randomised trials comparing different regimens for administration of magnesium sulphate used for the care of women with pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, or both.
Background: Shigella dysentery is a relatively common illness and occasionally causes death, worldwide. Mild symptoms are self-limiting but in more severe cases, antibiotics are recommended for cure and preventing relapse. The antibiotics recommended are diverse, have regional differences in sensitivity, and have side effects.
Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of antibiotics for treating Shigella dysentery.
Selection criteria: Randomized controlled trials of antibiotics for Shigella dysentery.
Background: It is important to institute an effective supportive therapy to maintain or recover soft tissue health around dental implants. Different maintenance regimens have been suggested, however it is unclear which are the most effective.
Objectives: To assess the effects of different interventions for 1) maintaining and 2) recovering soft tissue health around osseointegrated dental implants.
Selection criteria: All randomised controlled trials comparing agents or interventions for maintaining or recovering healthy tissues around dental implants.
Background: Treatment of cancer is increasingly effective but associated with short and long term side effects. Oral side effects, including oral mucositis (mouth ulceration), remain a major source of illness despite the use of a variety of agents to treat them.
Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of interventions for treating oral mucositis or its associated pain in patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy or both.
Selection criteria: All randomised controlled trials comparing agents prescribed to treat oral mucositis in people receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy or both. Outcomes were oral mucositis, time to heal mucositis, oral pain, duration of pain control, dysphagia, systemic infection, amount of analgesia, length of hospitalisation, cost and quality of life.
Background: Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and resulting pulmonary embolism (PE) are important complications of stroke. Physical methods to reduce the risk of DVT and PE, such as graduated compression stockings (GCS) or intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) applied to the legs, do not appear to be associated with any bleeding risk and reduce the risk of DVT in some categories of surgical patients. We sought to assess their effects in stroke patients.
Objectives: To assess the effectiveness and safety of physical methods of reducing the risk of DVT, fatal or non-fatal PE and death in patients with recent stroke.
Selection criteria: Unconfounded randomised controlled trials comparing physical methods for reducing the risk of DVT with control and in which prophylaxis was started within seven days of the onset of stroke.
Background: Access to combination antiretroviral therapy has turned HIV into a chronic and manageable disease for many. This increased chronicity has been mirrored by increased prevalence of health-related challenges experienced by people living with HIV (Rusch 2004). Exercise is a key strategy for people living with HIV and by rehabilitation professionals to address these disablements; however, knowledge about the effects of exercise among adults living with HIV still is emerging.
Objectives: To examine the safety and effectiveness of aerobic exercise interventions on immunologic and virologic, cardiopulmonary, psychologic outcomes and strength, weight, and body composition in adults living with HIV.
Selection criteria: We included studies of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing aerobic exercise interventions with no aerobic exercise interventions or another exercise or treatment modality, performed at least three times per week for at least four weeks among adults (18 years of age or older) living with HIV.
Background: One of the main aims of routine antenatal care is to identify the 'at risk' fetus in order to apply clinical interventions which could result in reduced perinatal morbidity and mortality. Doppler ultrasound study of umbilical artery waveforms helps to identify the compromised fetus in 'high-risk' pregnancies and, therefore, deserves assessment as a screening test in 'low-risk' pregnancies.
Objectives: To assess the effects on obstetric practice and pregnancy outcome of routine fetal and umbilical Doppler ultrasound in unselected and low-risk pregnancies.
Selection criteria: Randomised and quasi-randomised controlled trials of Doppler ultrasound for the investigation of umbilical and fetal vessels waveforms in unselected pregnancies compared to no Doppler ultrasound. Studies where uterine vessels have been assessed together with fetal and umbilical vessels have been included.
Background: Injected cholera vaccines are rarely used today, although they may have some benefit. It is valuable to summarize the evidence for effectiveness of injected cholera vaccines for comparison with newer oral vaccines (subject of a separate Cochrane Review).
Objectives: To evaluate killed whole cell (KWC) cholera vaccines and other inactive subunit vaccines (administered by injection) for preventing cholera and death, and to evaluate the adverse effects.
Selection criteria: Randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials comparing injected cholera vaccines (KWC or other inactive subunit) with placebo, control vaccines, or no intervention in adults and children irrespective of immune status or special risk category.
Background: Ovarian cancer is the sixth most common cancer among women and is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage. Bowel obstruction is a common feature of advanced or recurrent ovarian cancer. Patients with bowel obstruction are generally in poor physical condition with a limited life expectancy. Therefore, maintaining their QoL with effective symptom control is the main purpose of the management of bowel obstruction.
Objectives: To compare the effectiveness and safety of palliative surgery (surgery performed to control the cancer, reduce symptoms and improve quality of life for those whose cancer is not able to be entirely removed) and medical management for bowel obstruction in women with ovarian cancer.
Selection criteria: Studies that compared palliative surgery and medical interventions, in adult women diagnosed with ovarian cancer who had either full or partial obstruction of the bowel. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs that used multivariable statistical adjustment for baseline case mix were eligible.
Background: Circuit class therapy (CCT) offers a supervised group forum for people after stroke to practise tasks, enabling increased practise time without increasing staffing.
Objectives: To examine the effectiveness and safety of CCT on mobility in adults with stroke.
Selection criteria: Randomised or quasi-randomised controlled trials including people over 18 years old diagnosed with stroke of any severity, at any stage, or in any setting, receiving CCT.
Background: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a form of diabetes that occurs in pregnancy. Although GDM usually resolves following birth, it is associated with significant morbidities for mother and baby both perinatally and in the long term. There is strong evidence to support treatment for GDM. However, there is little consensus on whether or not screening for GDM will improve maternal and infant health and if so, the most appropriate protocol to follow.
Objectives: To assess the effects of different methods of screening for gestational diabetes mellitus and maternal and infant outcomes.
Selection criteria: Randomised and quasi-randomised trials evaluating the effects of different methods of screening for gestational diabetes mellitus.
Background: Cardiac rehabilitation is an important component of recovery from coronary events but uptake and adherence to such programmes are below the recommended levels. This aim is to update a previous non-Cochrane systematic review which examined interventions that may potentially improve cardiac patient uptake and adherence in rehabilitation or its components and concluded that there is insufficient evidence to make specific recommendations.
Objectives: To determine the effects of interventions to increase patient uptake of, and adherence to, cardiac rehabilitation.
Selection criteria: Adults with myocardial infarction, coronary artery bypass graft, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, heart failure, angina, or coronary heart disease eligible for cardiac rehabilitation and randomised or quasi-randomised trials of interventions to increase uptake or adherence to cardiac rehabilitation or any of its component parts. Only studies reporting a measure of adherence were included.
Background: Allergic rhinitis is a very common chronic illness affecting 10% to 40% of children worldwide and its prevalence among children has significantly increased over the last two decades. Prevalence and severity are related to age, with children of school age most commonly affected.
Objectives: To assess the effectiveness and adverse event profile of antihistamines (oral or topical) used as an adjunct to topical nasal steroids for intermittent and persistent allergic rhinitis in children.
Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in children under the age of 18 with a history of allergic rhinitis, with or without allergic conjunctivitis or asthma, comparing topical nasal steroids with antihistamines to topical nasal steroids only.
Background: Lumiracoxib is a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor. COX-2 inhibitors were developed to avoid COX-1-related gastrointestinal (GI) problems while maintaining the analgesic and anti-inflammatory activity of traditional non-steriodal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
Objectives: To review the analgesic efficacy, duration of analgesia, and adverse effects of a single oral dose of lumiracoxib for moderate to severe postoperative pain in adults.
Selection criteria: Single oral dose, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of lumiracoxib for relief of established moderate to severe postoperative pain in adults.
Background: This is an updated version of the original Cochrane review published in issue 1 2008 (Minton 2008). Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is common, under-recognised and difficult to treat. There have been studies looking at drug interventions to improve CRF but results have been conflicting depending on the population studied and outcome measures used. No previous reviews of this topic have been exhaustive or have synthesised all available data.
Objectives: To assess the efficacy of drugs for the management of CRF.
Selection criteria: Studies were included in the review if they 1) assessed drug therapy for the management of CRF compared to placebo, usual care or a non-pharmacological intervention in 2) randomised controlled trials (RCT) of 3) adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of cancer.
Background: The low uptake of HIV voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) has hindered global attempts to prevent new HIV infections and has limited scale-up of HIV care and treatment. Globally, only 10% of HIV-infected individuals are aware of their HIV status. One approach to increase uptake is home-based HIV VCT, which may be effective in increasing the number of patients on treatment and preventing new infections.
Objectives: To establish the effect of home-based HIV VCT on uptake of HIV testing
Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials comparing home-based HIV VCT with other testing models
Background: There is conflicting evidence regarding the clinical efficacy of proton pump inhibitors (PPI) initiated before endoscopy for upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Objectives: To systematically review evidence from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of PPI treatment initiated before endoscopy for upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Selection criteria: We selected randomised controlled trials (RCTs), of hospitalised participants with unselected upper gastrointestinal bleeding, undergoing active treatment with a proton pump inhibitor PPI (oral or intravenous) and control treatment with either placebo, histamine-2 receptor antagonist (H2RA) or no treatment prior to endoscopy. Outcomes were assessed at 30 days and included mortality, rebleeding and surgery. Also assessed were stigmata of recent haemorrhage (SRH; active bleeding, non bleeding visible vessel or adherent clot) at index endoscopy, length of hospital stay, blood transfusion requirements and requirement for endoscopic therapy at index endoscopy.
Background: This review is an update on 'Sympathectomy for neuropathic pain' originally published in Issue 2, 2003. The concept that many neuropathic pain syndromes (traditionally this definition would include complex regional pain syndromes (CRPS)) are "sympathetically maintained pains" has historically led to treatments that interrupt the sympathetic nervous system. Chemical sympathectomies use alcohol or phenol injections to destroy ganglia of the sympathetic chain, while surgical ablation is performed by open removal or electrocoagulation of the sympathetic chain, or minimally invasive procedures using thermal or laser interruption.
Objectives: To review the evidence from randomised, double blind, controlled trials on the efficacy and safety of chemical and surgical sympathectomy for neuropathic pain. Sympathectomy could be compared with placebo (sham) or other active treatment.
Selection criteria: Randomised, double blind, placebo or active controlled studies assessing the effects of sympathectomy for neuropathic pain and CRPS.
Background: It is unclear whether blood pressure (BP) should be altered actively during the acute phase of stroke.
Objectives: To assess the effect of lowering or elevating BP in people with acute stroke, and the effect of different vasoactive drugs on BP in acute stroke.
Selection criteria: Randomised trials of interventions that would be expected, on pharmacological grounds, to alter BP in patients within one week of the onset of acute stroke.
Background: Behavioural treatment is commonly used in the management of chronic low-back pain (CLBP) to reduce disability through modification of maladaptive pain behaviours and cognitive processes. Three behavioural approaches are generally distinguished: operant, cognitive, and respondent; but are often combined as a treatment package.
Objectives: To determine the effects of behavioural therapy for CLBP and the most effective behavioural approach.
Selection criteria: Randomised trials on behavioural treatments for non-specific CLBP were included.
Background: Treatment of cancer is increasingly effective but is associated with short and long term side effects. Oral and gastrointestinal side effects, including oral candidiasis, remain a major source of illness despite the use of a variety of agents to treat them.
Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of interventions for the treatment of oral candidiasis for patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy or both.
Selection criteria: All randomised controlled trials comparing agents prescribed to treat oral candidiasis in people receiving chemotherapy or radiotherapy for cancer. The outcomes were eradication of oral candidiasis, dysphagia, systemic infection, amount of analgesia, length of hospitalisation, cost and patient quality of life.
Background: This is an update of a Cochrane Review first published in The Cochrane Library in Issue 4, 2001 and previously updated in 2003 and 2007.It is estimated that in developed countries approximately 30% of the general population suffer from one or more allergic disorders, of which allergic rhinitis is particularly common. Perennial rhinitis is most often due to allergy to the house dust mite. In such patients house dust mite avoidance is logical, but there is considerable uncertainty regarding the efficacy and effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce dust mite exposure.
Objectives: To assess the benefit (and harm) of measures designed to reduce house dust mite exposure in the management of house dust mite sensitive allergic rhinitis.
Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials, with or without blinding, in which house dust mite control measures have been evaluated in comparison with placebo or other dust mite avoidance measures, in patients with clinician-diagnosed allergic rhinitis and confirmed allergy to dust mite.
Background: The roles of pharmacists in patient care have expanded from the traditional tasks of dispensing medications and providing basic medication counseling to working with other health professionals and the public. Multiple reviews have evaluated the impact of pharmacist-provided patient care on health-related outcomes. Prior reviews have primarily focused on in-patient settings. This systematic review focuses on services provided by outpatient pharmacists in community or ambulatory care settings. This is an update of the Cochrane review published in 2000.
Objectives: To examine the effect of outpatient pharmacists' non-dispensing roles on patient and health professional outcomes.
Selection criteria: Randomized controlled trials comparing 1. Pharmacist services targeted at patients versus services delivered by other health professionals; 2. Pharmacist services targeted at patients versus the delivery of no comparable service; 3. Pharmacist services targeted at health professionals versus services delivered by other health professionals; 4. Pharmacist services targeted at health professionals versus the delivery of no comparable service.
Background: Persistent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is associated with mortality and morbidity in preterm infants. Prostaglandin synthetase inhibitors such as indomethacin promote PDA closure but also have potential side effects. The effect of the prophylactic use of indomethacin, where infants who may not have gone on to develop a symptomatic PDA would be exposed to indomethacin, warrants particular scrutiny.
Objectives: To determine the effect of prophylactic indomethacin on mortality and morbidity in preterm infants.
Selection criteria: Randomised or quasi-randomised controlled trials that compared prophylactic indomethacin versus placebo or no drug in preterm infants.
Background: Bed rest used to be widely advised for women with a multiple pregnancy.
Objectives: The objective was to assess the effect of bed rest in hospital for women with a multiple pregnancy for prevention of preterm birth and other fetal, neonatal and maternal outcomes.
Selection criteria: Randomised trials which compare outcomes in women with a multiple pregnancy and their babies who were offered bed rest in hospital with women only admitted to hospital if complications occurred.