INTRODUCTION The therapeutic arsenal against cutaneous leishmaniasis is very limited. Pentavalent antimonial compounds have been the drugs of choice for treatment of this disease for over 50 years. Despite their effectiveness, these drugs require daily injections, have many side effects and present prolonged healing time. OBJECTIVE To carry out a systematic literature review on the advances i...

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE Preoperative glucocorticoid administration has been proposed for reducing postoperative morbidity. This is not widely used before esophageal resection because of incomplete knowledge regarding its effectiveness. The aim here was to assess the effects of preoperative glucocorticoid administration in adults undergoing esophageal resection for esophageal carcinoma. SEARCH S...

Many cancer patients use homeopathic approaches to increase their body's ability to fight cancer, improve their physical and emotional well-being, and alleviate their pain resulting from the disease or conventional treatments. Homeopathy is highly controversial as there is no plausible mode of action for these highly diluted remedies. The aim of this systematic review is to summarize and critic...

BACKGROUND The current surgical debate has led to a reduction in the extent of surgery performed and thereby to a reduced occurrence of surgical trauma and, over the recent years, reduced seroma formation. This reduction in surgical procedures calls the need for a drain into question. METHOD Using Google Scholar and the National Library of Medicine (PubMed), a literature review was performed ...

OBJECTIVES Lateral epicondyle pain is a common complaint in North America. In the past 10 yr acupuncture has become increasingly recognized as an alternative treatment for pain, including epicondyle pain. This review evaluates the effectiveness of acupuncture as a treatment for lateral epicondylitis using the appropriate analysis. METHODS Online bibliographic database searches in any language...

BACKGROUND To investigate the methodological quality of randomized controlled trials in three areas of complementary medicine. METHODS The methodological quality of 207 randomized trials collected for five previously published systematic reviews on homeopathy, herbal medicine (Hypericum for depression, Echinacea for common cold), and acupuncture (for asthma and chronic headache) was assessed ...

AIM The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of forced-air warming for preventing perioperative hypothermia. BACKGROUND Perioperative hypothermia commonly occurs in patients receiving anaesthesia during surgeries. However, the effectiveness of warming systems requires verification. DESIGN Systematic review incorporating meta-analysis. DATA SOURCES We searched OVID, PubMed, ...

M e t h o d s Data sources: MEDLINE, EMBASE/ Excerpta Medica, CINAHL, and LILACS to May 2006; Cochrane Library (2006, Issue 1); Current Controlled Trials; references of relevant studies and systematic reviews; experts; and pharmaceutical companies. Study selection and assessment: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared thyroid hormone replacement therapy (triiodothyronine [T3], thyrox...

In this study, we evaluate the efficacy of short-course radiotherapy (SCRT) versus long-course radiotherapy (LCRT) in the treatment of metastatic spinal cord compression (MSCC).PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched up to April 2015. Relevant data were extracted based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Methodological quality of randomized controlled trial (RCT) was evaluated using m...

Spiritism is the third most common religion in Brazil, and its therapies have been used by millions worldwide. These therapies are based on therapeutic resources including prayer, laying on of hands, fluidotherapy (magnetized water), charity/volunteering, spirit education/moral values, and disobsession (spirit release therapy). This paper presents a systematic review of the current literature o...