ObjectiveTo compare the impact of early enteral nutrition (EN) and parenteral nutrition (PN) on the postoperative efficacy of esophageal cancer through meta-analysis of relevant randomized controlled trial (RCT).MethodsPubMed, Medline, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Database, VIP, China Biology Medicine disc (CBMdisc) were searched by computer from inception to April 2018 to identify potential RCT which assessed clinical efficacy between EN and PN for postoperative patients with esophageal cancer. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, two researchers independently screened and evaluated literature. Meta-analysis was performed by RevMan 5.3 software.ResultsA total of 30 RCT studies were selected, including 3 969 patients. Meta-analysis results showed that: there was a significant difference between EN and PN in postoperative anastomotic fistulas (I2=0%, OR=0.67, 95%CI 0.45-0.99, P=0.04), postoperative pulmonary infections (I2=0%, OR=0.42, 95%CI 0.32-0.55, P<0.000 1), postoperative albumin levels (I2=38%, MD=0.78, 95%CI 0.51-1.06, P<0.000 01),time of first anal exhaust after operation (I2=0%, MD=–23.16, 95%CI –25.16-21.16, P<0.000 01) and postoperative incision infection (I2=0%, RR=0.36, 95%CI 0.21-0.64, P=0.000 5).ConclusionCompared with PN, early EN can significantly reduce the incidence of major postoperative complications and shorten the time of first anal exhaust after surgery. In addition, EN is superior to PN in improving nutritional status, increasing weight and reducing costs and side effects.
ObjectiveZero-events studies frequently occur in systematic reviews of adverse events, which consist of an important source of evidence. We aimed to examine how evidence of zero-events studies was utilized in the meta-analyses of systematic reviews of adverse events.MethodsWe conducted a survey of systematic reviews published in two periods: January 1, 2015 to January 1, 2020 and January 1, 2008, to April 25, 2011. Databases were searched for systematic reviews that conducted at least one meta-analysis of any healthcare intervention and used adverse events as the exclusive outcome. An adverse event was defined as any untoward medical occurrence in a patient or subject in healthcare practice. We summarized the frequency of occurrence of zero-events studies in eligible systematic reviews and how these studies were dealt with in the meta-analyses of these systematic reviews.ResultsWe included 640 eligible systematic reviews. There were 406 (63.45%) systematic reviews involving zero-events studies in their meta-analyses, among which 389 (95.11%) involved single-arm-zero-events studies and 223 (54.93%) involved double-arm-zero-events studies. The majority (98.71%) of these systematic reviews incorporated single-arm-zero-events studies into the meta-analyses. On the other hand, the majority (76.23%) of them excluded double-arm-zero-events studies from the meta-analyses, of which the majority (87.06%) did not discuss the potential impact of excluding such studies. Systematic reviews published at present (2015-2020) tended to incorporate zero-events studies in meta-analyses than those published in the past (2008-2011), but the difference was not significant [proportion difference=–0.09, 95%CI (–0.21, 0.03), P=0.12].ConclusionSystematic review authors routinely treated studies with zero-events in both arms as "non-informative" carriers and excluded them from their reviews. Whether studies with no events are "informative" or not, largely depends on the methods and assumptions applied, thus sensitivity analyses using different methods should be considered in future meta-analyses.
Objective To explore the association between the preoperative systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Methods A comprehensive literature survey was performed on PubMed, Web of Science, EMbase, The Cochrane Library, Wanfang, and CNKI databases to search the related studies from inception to December 2021. The hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were combined to evaluate the correlation of the preoperative SII with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in NSCLC patients. Results A total of 11 studies involving 9 180 patients were eventually included. The combined analysis showed that high SII levels were significantly associated with worse OS (HR=1.61, 95%CI 1.36-1.90, P<0.001), DFS (HR=1.50, 95%CI 1.34-1.68, P<0.001), and RFS (HR=1.17, 95%CI 1.04-1.33, P<0.001). Subgroup analyses also further verified the above results. Conclusion Preoperative SII is a powerful prognostic biomarker for predicting outcome in patients with operable NSCLC and contribute to prognosis evaluation and treatment strategy formulation. However, more well-designed and prospective studies are warranted to verify our findings.
Objective To systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of dose-dense neoadjuvant chemotherapy (ddNACT) and conventional neoadjuvant chemotherapy (cNACT) for locally advanced breast cancer (LABC). Methods PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CNKI, Wanfang Data, and VIP databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCT) comparing ddNACT regimen with cNACT regimen for breast cancer. The time limit for retrieval was from establishment to March 1st, 2021. Two reviewers independently screened literatures, extracted data and assessed risk bias of included studies; then, meta-analysis was performed by using Stata 15.0 software. Results A total of 13 RCTs were included, including 3 258 patients, of which 1 625 patients received ddNACT and 1 633 patients received cNACT. The results of meta-analysis showed that the ddNACT regimen could improve the pathological complete response rate (pCR, P<0.001), objective response rate (ORR, P<0.001), and disease free survival (DFS, P=0.037) as compared with the cNACT regimen, there was no significant difference in the overall survival (OS) between the two groups (P=0.098). The incidences of grade 3 or 4 oral stomatitis (P=0.005) and neurotoxicity (P<0.001) were higher and the incidence of grade 3 or 4 neutropenia was lower (P=0.025) in the patients with ddNACT regimen, there were no significant differences in grade 3 or 4 thrombocytopenia (P=0.152), grade 3 or 4 anemia (P=0.123), chemotherapy completion rate (P=0.161) and breast conservative surgery rate (P=0.186) between the two groups. Patients with hormone receptor (HR) negative (HR–) were more likely to get pCR after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (P<0.001). ConclusionsCurrent evidence shows that the use of anthracycline/taxane-based ddNACT regimen in LABC patients can improve the pCR, ORR, and DFS as compared with cNACT regimen. The pCR after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the patients with HR– is higher than that with HR+. Prophylactic use of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor could significantly reduce the incidence of neutropenia, and most patients are tolerant to ddNACT regimen, 2 regimens have similar chemotherapy completion rates.
ObjectiveTo further evaluate the relation between usage of proton pump inhibitor (PPI) and the risk of pancreatic cancer. MethodThe observational studies were systematically searched in the databases of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials.gov, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP. The combined odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of pancreatic cancer risk were estimated by the corresponding effect model according to the heterogeneous results, and the subgroup analysis, meta-regression, and sensitivity analysis were performed. In addition, the relation between the defined daily dose (DDD) and usage time of PPI and the pancreatic cancer risk were studied by using restricted cubic spline. ResultsA total of 14 studies were included, including 1 601 430 subjects. The meta-analysis result showed that usage of PPI was positively correlated with the risk of pancreatic cancer [I2=98.9%, OR (95%CI)=1.60 (1.21, 2.11), P<0.001]. The subgroup analysis results showed that usage of PPI would increase the risk of pancreatic cancer in the subgroups of literature published before 2018 [OR (95%CI)=1.88 (1.05, 3.38), P=0.034], non-Asian regions [OR (95%CI)=1.37 (1.04, 1.82), P=0.028], case-control studies [OR (95%CI)=1.59 (1.16, 2.18), P=0.004], cohort studies [OR (95%CI)=1.65 (1.13, 2.39), P=0.009], and high-quality studies [OR (95%CI)=1.62 (1.19, 2.20), P=0.002]. The dose-response curve showed that there was a nonlinear relation between the usage of PPI and the risk of pancreatic cancer (χ2linear=2.27, P=0.132; Pnonlinear=0.039). When the usage of PPI was 800 DDD or less, usage of PPI would increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, but there was no statistical significance when the usage of PPI was more than 800 DDD. The time-effect curve showed that there was a linear relation between the usage time of PPI and the risk of pancreatic cancer (χ2linear=6.92, P=0.009), and the risk of pancreatic cancer would increase by 2.3% if the usage of PPI increased by one month [OR=1.02, 95%CI (1.01, 1.04), P=0.009]. The sensitivity analysis confirmed that the results were stable by gradually eliminating each study, the OR (95%CI) of the risk of pancreatic cancer was 1.37 (1.08, 1.74) to 1.66 (1.22, 2.27), and the publication bias was not found by Egger test (P=0.594).ConclusionsFrom the results of this meta-analysis, usage of PPI will increase the risk of pancreatic cancer, and the dosage of PPI and usage time of PPI may be related to the risk of pancreatic cancer. The clinical usage of PPI should be strictly controlled, and the dosage and usage time should also be carefully considered.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the efficacy of different nucleosides (acids) in preventing hepatitis B virus reactivation after chemotherapy in cancer patients. MethodsThe Cochrane Library, PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, CNKI, WanFang Data, and VIP databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of different nucleosides (acids) to prevent HBV reactivation after chemotherapy in cancer patients from inception to June 7th, 2021. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Network meta-analysis was then performed by using Stata 16.0 software. ResultsA total of 43 RCTs involving 3 269 patients were included. There were 7 interventions, namely entecavir (ETV), lamivudine (LAM), adefovir dipivoxil (ADV), telbivudine (LdT), tenofovir dipivoxil (TDF), lamivudine combined with entecavir (LAM+ETV), and lamivudine combined with adefovir dipivoxil (LAM+ADV). The results of network meta-analysis showed that the efficacy of reducing the reactivation rate of ETV, LAM, ADV, LdT, TDF, LAM+ETV, LAM+ADV were superior than the control group. The ETV, LAM and ADV were not as effective as LAM+ETV. The leading drug combinations were LAM+ETV (94.8%), LdT (81.5%) and LA+ADV (58.0%). ConclusionsCurrent evidence shows that LAM+ETV, LdT, and LA+ADV are more effective in preventing hepatitis B virus reactivation after chemotherapy in cancer patients. Due to limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high-quality studies are required to verify the above conclusions.
Objective To systematically review the efficacy of six cognitive interventions on cognitive function of patients with mild cognitive impairment after stroke. Methods The PubMed, EMbase, Cochrane Library, SinoMed, WanFang Data and CNKI databases were electronically searched to collect randomized controlled trials on the effects of non-drug interventions on the cognitive function of patients with mild cognitive impairment after stroke from inception to March 2023. Two reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. Network meta-analysis was then performed using Openbugs 3.2.3 and Stata 16.0 software. Results A total of 72 studies involving 4 962 patients were included. The results of network meta-analysis showed that the following five cognitive interventions improved the cognitive function of stroke patients with mild cognitive impairment: cognitive control intervention (SMD=?1.28, 95%CI ?1.686 to ?0.90, P<0.05) had the most significant effect on the improvement of cognitive function, followed by computer cognitive training (SMD=?1.02, 95%CI ?1.51 to ?0.53, P<0.05), virtual reality cognitive training (SMD=?1.20, 95%CI ?1.78 to ?0.62, P<0.05), non-invasive neural regulation (SMD=?1.09, 95%CI ?1.58 to ?0.60, P<0.05), and cognitive stimulation (SMD=?0.94, 95%CI ?1.82 to ?0.07, P<0.05). Conclusion Five cognitive interventions are effective in improving cognitive function for stroke patients with mild cognitive impairment, among which cognitive control intervention is the most effective. Due to the limited quantity and quality of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objective To compare the efficacy and safety of dynamic hip screw (DHS) + anti-rotation screw and cannulated screw alone for femoral neck fracture in adults. Methods PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, SinoMed, Wanfang, and Chongqing VIP database were searched for the literature related to the comparison between DHS + anti-rotation screw and cannulated screw alone for femoral neck fracture in adults from the establishment of databases to 2022. RevMan 5.3 software was used for meta-analysis. Results Finally, 25 clinical studies were included, including 8 randomized controlled trials and 17 observational studies, 5 in English and 20 in Chinese. There were a total of 2099 patients, including 989 in the DHS + anti-rotation screw group and 1110 in the cannulated screw group. The meta-analysis results showed that the incidence of bone nonunion [odds ratio (OR)=0.29, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.17, 0.48)], incidence of femoral head necrosis [OR=0.48, 95% CI (0.27, 0.88)], failure rate of internal fixation [OR=0.28, 95% CI (0.15, 0.51)] in the DHS + anti-rotation screw group were lower than those in the cannulated screw group (P<0.05). The surgical duration [mean difference (MD)=9.91, 95% CI (6.78, 13.05)], incision length [MD=1.25, 95% CI (0.15, 2.35)], and Harris score [MD=6.77, 95% CI (4.66, 8.88)] in the DHS + anti-rotation screw group were higher than those in the cannulated screw group (P<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference in intraoperative bleeding volume, Visual Analogue Scale score, hospital stay, and fracture healing time between the two groups (P>0.05). The incidence of bone nonunion in the DHS + anti-rotation screw group after Pauwels type Ⅲ fracture [OR=0.16, 95% CI (0.05, 0.50)] was lower than that in the cannulated screw group (P<0.05), and there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of femoral head necrosis between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusions For femoral neck fracture in adults, DHS + anti-rotation screw can reduce the incidence of bone nonunion, femoral head necrosis, and internal fixation failure compared with cannulated screw alone, and has a higher Harris score, but the surgical duration and incision are longer. Overall, DHS + anti-rotation screw are better at reducing the incidence of complications than cannulated screws alone.
ObjectiveTo compare the clinical outcomes of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in oncology and non-oncology patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS).MethodsA computer-based search in PubMed, The Cochrane Library, EMbase, CBM, CNKI and Wanfang databases from their date of inception to December 2021 was performed, together with reference screening, to identify eligible clinical trials. Two investigators screened the articles, extracted data, and evaluated quality independently. RevMan 5.3 and Stata 12.0 softwares were used for meta-analysis.ResultsThe selected 8 cohort studies contained 57 988 patients, including 12 335 cancer patients and 45 653 non-cancer patients. The results of meta-analysis showed that in patients with cancer, the 30-day mortality [OR=0.74, 95%CI (0.65, 0.84), I2=0%, P<0.000 01], stroke [OR=0.87, 95%CI (0.76, 0.99), I2=0%, P=0.04] and acute kidney injury [OR=0.81, 95%CI (0.76, 0.85), I2=49%, P<0.000 01] were lower than those in patients without cancer. The 1-year mortality [OR=1.46, 95%CI (1.15, 1.86), I2=62%, P=0.002] and late mortality [OR=1.51, 95%CI (1.24, 1.85), I2=61%, P<0.000 1] were higher in patients with cancer.ConclusionIt is effective and safe in cancer patients with severe AS undergoing TAVI. However, compared with patients without cancer, it is still high in long-term mortality, and further study of the role of TAVI in cancer patients with AS is necessary.
Objective To systematically evaluate the correlation between the expression of microRNA (miRNA)-21 and the prognosis of esophageal cancer. Methods PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, Wanfang Data, China National Knowledge Infrastructure and VIP Databases were searched by for the literature on the correlation between miRNA-21 and the prognosis of esophageal cancer till July 10, 2022. Two researchers independently performed literature screening, quality evaluation, and data extraction. Statistical analysis was conducted with Stata 14.0. Results A total of 13 articles were included, including 1 204 patients. The results of meta-analysis showed that: the overall survival (OS) of patients with high expression of miRNA-21 was lower than that of patients with low expression of miRNA-21 [hazard ratio (HR)=2.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) (1.56, 2.84), P<0.001]. miRNA-21 expression was not associated with disease free survival [HR=2.53, 95%CI (0.67, 8.22), P=0.182]. The OS of Asian patients with high expression of miRNA-21 was significantly lower [HR=2.44, 95%CI (1.71, 3.49), P=0.005], while the OS of non-Asian patients was not related to miRNA-21 expression [HR=1.34, 95%CI (0.94, 1.91), P=0.363]. The high expression of miRNA-21 was correlated with the decreased OS in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma [HR=2.22, 95%CI (1.52, 3.26), P=0.001], while the OS in patients with esophageal adenocarcinoma was not correlated with the expression of miRNA-21 [HR=1.39, 95%CI (0.63, 3.06), P=0.409]. Conclusion The overexpression of miRNA-21 is associated with poor prognosis and might be regarded as a potential prognostic biomarker for patients with esophageal cancer.