OBJECTIVE: To establish the clinical relevance of @entity25236 in the treatment of @entity2169 in @entity1 using measures approximating those saving a @entity1 from operation for grommet insertion. DATA SOURCES: Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PubMed, reference lists and reviews were used for randomised controlled trials comparing @entity25236 with placebo. Seven trials involving 283 @entity1 and 146 ears were found. REVIEW METHODS: Studies were randomised, double-blind comparisons of @entity25236 (any dose and duration) with placebo in @entity2346 media with effusion. Quality of trial reporting and validity of methods were assessed and used in sensitivity analysis. Main outcomes were relative benefit and number-needed-to-treat to prevent one grommet operation compared with placebo. RESULTS: Successful outcomes were obtained in 17% of @entity1 given placebo (range 5% to 38% in individual studies) and in 35% of @entity1 given @entity25236 (range 22 to 80%). For combined data ( @entity1 and ears) the relative benefit was 2.0 (95%CI 1.4 to 2.8) and number-needed-to-treat 5.5 (95% confidence interval 3.8 to 9.8). Pooled data from trials of higher reporting quality (4/7) or methodological validity (3/7) tended to have lower efficacy but were not statistically different from those of lower quality or validity. CONCLUSION: @entity25236 is effective in the treatment of @entity1 with @entity2169 . For every five or six @entity1 treated with @entity25236 over one to three months, one will not undergo surgery for grommet insertion who would have done had they been given placebo. The confidence in this conclusion is limited because studies included relatively few @entity1 .

XXXX in the treatment of @entity2169 : quantitative systematic review.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['children', 'child'] @entity2169 :: ('MESH:D004427', 'Disease') :: ['glue ear'] @entity25236 :: ('MESH:D002233', 'Chemical') :: ['S-carboxymethylcysteine'] @entity2346 :: ('MESH:D010031', 'Disease') :: ['otitis']
@entity25236 :: (MESH:D002233,Chemical) :: ['S-carboxymethylcysteine']
