Current Issue : July - September Volume : 2021 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 6 Articles
Objectives. Shenfu Injection (SFI) was widely used in the treatment of heart failure (HF) in China. A plethora of systematic reviews/meta-analyses (SRs/MAs) has been conducted in this research area, although with scattered results. The purpose of this overview was to conduct a comprehensive review to summarize and critically evaluate the existing evidence. Methods. Digital databases were searched for SRs/MAs up to January 28, 2021. Two authors independently screened the reviews and assessed the methodological quality of included SRs/MAs using Assessing the Methodological Quality of Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR-2). Quality of evidence for outcomes evaluated within the reviews was appraised with the Grading of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Results. Thirteen SRs/MAs met the inclusion criteria. Based on AMSTAR- 2, the quality of all SRs/MAs was critically low, because all of them have more than one critical domains that were unmet. Based on GRADE, the evidence quality of 24 outcome measures was low or very low, 27 outcome measures was moderate, and none outcome measure was high. Descriptive analysis showed that SFI was an effective and safe method for HF. Conclusions. The use of SFI for the treatment of HF may be clinically effective and safe. However, this conclusion must be interpreted cautiously due to the generally low methodological quality and low evidence quality of the included SRs/MAs. More rigorously designed SRs/MAs and RCTs with high methodological quality are necessary for further proof....
Background: Stroke is the second leading cause of death in the world and the third due to disability. However, there are few data available that identify the risk factors associated with it and their weight in different populations (population risk). Aim: Contribute to the knowledge of burden risk factors in stroke in a large cohort of Southern Italy. Methods: The data refer to a randomized Campania cohort of 1200 subjects (35 - 74 years) enrolled in 2008-09. Ten years later (2018-19) they were re-evaluated. We analyzed data from 32 patients who reported a cerebrovascular event (stroke or TIA) with the event-free group of subjects (804 subjects: 378 men and 426 women). We evaluated: absolute risk, Odds Ratio (OR), Additional Risk (AR), Risk Attributable to the Population (PAR) and, finally, the Population Attributable risk Fraction (FAP).........................
Vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) is the primary cause of hospitalization in patients with sickle cell disease. Treatment mainly consists of intravenous morphine or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), which have many dose-related side effects. -e question arises as to whether vascular electrical stimulation therapy (VEST) could be effective or not on VOCs. Objective. To measure the effectiveness and safety of VEST in reducing the median time spent in severe VOC. Methods. We conducted a phase II, single blinded, randomized, controlled, triple-arm, comparative trial. We included thirty (30) adult patients with severe vaso-occlusive crisis. -e study arms were divided as follows: our control group (group 0) constituted of 10 patients followed with conventional therapy (Analgesics + Hydration + NSAIDs), while 20 patients were divided equally into two interventional....................
Rituximab is a mouse and human chimeric CD20 (anti-B cell) specific monoclonal antibody that has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of lymphoma. The expression of CD20 antigen is expressed in the whole ontogeny of B cells, starting from the premature B cells in bone marrow to the differentiation of plasma cells in secondary lymphoid tissues. The wide distribution of CD20 molecules allows rituximab to eliminate a large number of B cells. Rituximab is the core drug for the treatment of hematological diseases, often combined with drugs as a first-line treatment. Long-term hormone therapy often results in serious adverse reactions, and new therapies, which can avoid widespread immunotoxicity, have great potential for treating diseases of the blood system....
Coronary artery fistulas are usually diagnosed accidentally without the presence of any symptoms. On the other hand, the combination of fistula between the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and pulmonary artery (PA) and severe stenosis of the LAD, as in this case report, is a potential life-threatening condition. A 72-year-old patient was treated surgically after being diagnosed with fistula between the LAD and PA, severe stenosis of the LAD, and severe pulmonary hypertension. In following paragraphs, the case of this man and significant issues regarding the development and management of coronary artery fistulas are analyzed....
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