Psychological and educational interventions for childhood constipation This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To evaluate the efficacy of psychological and educational intervention programmes used for functional constipation in children. This is a protocol....

Prophylactic treatment with monoclonal antibodies targeting the CGRP pathway for migraine prevention This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the effects of monoclonal antibodies targeting the CGRP pathway compared with placebo or active treatments in preventing or reducing the symptoms of migraine attacks in adult and paediatric patients. This is a protocol....

Prognostic accuracy of imaging findings for predicting morbidity and mortality in patients with COVID-19 This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (prognosis). The objectives are as follows: To evaluate the accuracy of imaging findings (on chest CT, chest X-ray, and ultrasound of the lungs) to predict the following medical outcomes in people with COVID-19. Morbidity, including: complications (e.g. development of hypoxia, severe AKI, delirium); escalation of care (e.g. hospital admission, ICU admission, non-invasive ventilation, intubation, mechanical ventilation, ECMO, need for renal...

What are the benefits and risks of cognitive rehabilitation for people with mild-to-moderate dementia? Key messages Cognitive rehabilitation helps people living with dementia to manage everyday activities that are important to them. Future studies could explore how to use cognitive rehabilitation to also improve overall functioning and wellbeing. What is dementia? Dementia is a group of symptoms caused by changes in the brain that get worse over time. People with some types of dementia have difficulties with memory, planning, concentrating, and communicating. These and other thinking...

Do social support interventions help people with heart disease? Key messages There is no clear evidence to suggest that social support or social network programmes help people with heart disease. These programmes may produce some improvement in quality of life and blood pressure. Our review suggests that, while social support or social network interventions may have potential to help people with heart disease, more high-quality, clearly reported trials are needed to prove any effectiveness. What is heart disease? The term 'heart disease' refers to a range of disorders affecting the heart,...

Multimodal interventions for cachexia management This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess: the effects of multimodal interventions which aim to alleviate and/or stabilise cachexia (disease-related wasting) in people with a chronic illness; and the safety of multimodal interventions when given to people with cachexia. This is a protocol....

Social and economic policy interventions to address household food insecurity in high-income countries (HIC) and the developing nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: Primary objective To assess the effects of social and economic policy interventions for reducing the prevalence or severity, or both, of household food insecurity in high-income countries (HIC) and the developing nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS). Secondary objective To characterise...

Does the separation or grouping, or both of newborn infants in the newborn unit decrease spread of infections? Key messages We did not find any published or ongoing medical studies to answer our question. Future studies are needed to assess the usefulness of separating or grouping newborn babies in decreasing the spread of infections as well as the financial costs of doing so. What are healthcare-associated infections? Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are infections that patients develop during their stay in the hospital, which were not present before hospital admission. They commonly...

Digital devices for tuberculosis treatment adherence This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the effects of digital devices (feature phone-based and smartphone-based technologies, digital pillboxes, ingestible sensors, and other devices) for improving tuberculosis treatment adherence. This is a protocol....

Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues for pain associated with endometriosis What are the benefits and risks of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues (GnRHas) for pain associated with endometriosis? Key messages GnRHas offer more pain reduction compared to placebo or progestogens. However, the largest decrease in bone mineral density (BMD) was found when using GnRHas, compared to a different hormone called gestrinone and GnRHas together with calcium-regulating agents (acting on bone). Most adverse effects were hot flushes for patients treated with GnRHas or gestrinone (hormone) and...

Is X-ray treatment (radiotherapy) after removal of breast tissue (mastectomy) better than no X-ray treatment in women diagnosed with breast cancer that has spread to one to three armpit lymph nodes? Key message: • Radiotherapy after breast removal (also known as mastectomy) may reduce cancer returning to the chest wall and in the nearby lymph nodes. • Radiotherapy probably improves survival in women diagnosed with breast cancer who have 1 to 3 involved lymph nodes. • We found one large ongoing international study that should provide more evidence when it has finished. What is breast cancer?...

Pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for impulsive-compulsive behaviors in Parkinson's disease This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: Primary objective To assess and compare the effects of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for ICBs in people with Parkinson's disease. Secondary objective To assess whether the effects of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for ICBs in people with Parkinson's disease differ according to ICB subtype. This is a protocol....

What are the effects of non-Chinese herbal medicines for people with functional dyspepsia? Key results We identified multiple herbal medicines that were effective in improving symptoms and well-being in people with functional dyspepsia. Also, they may not be associated with important unwanted events compared to sham treatment. However, we found little evidence on the comparative effectiveness of herbal medicines and other treatments. The effect of herbal medicines may need to be compared to common medical treatments for functional dyspepsia to assess their relative effectiveness. More...

Typhoid conjugate vaccines for preventing typhoid fever (enteric fever) This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the efficacy and safety of typhoid conjugate vaccines compared to no vaccine, placebo, typhoid-inactive agents (vaccines for another disease), or other typhoid vaccines for preventing morbidity and mortality associated with typhoid fever infection in adults and children. This is a protocol....

Is fenofibrate effective for diabetic retinopathy? What was the aim of this review? The aim of this review was to find out whether fenofibrate prevents people with either type 1 (T1D) or type 2 (T2D) diabetes from developing diabetic retinopathy (DR), or if they already had DR, whether it slows its progression, when compared with placebo or observation. Key messages - overall, fenofibrate likely made little to no difference in the progression of DR when compared with placebo (moderate-certainty evidence) - for people with DR, their DR likely progressed slowly when they took fenofibrate...

Is local or major surgery better for treating early rectal cancer with or without additional treatments before or after surgery? Key messages We are uncertain if local excision (LE) (removal through the anus of an early rectal cancer that has not grown beyond the muscle layer of the rectum, or stage I) may shorten the period of being cancer-free after surgery compared to radical resection (RR) (removing the entire rectum and its surrounding tissues through a major surgery). It is also unclear if LE affects cancer-related survival related compared with RR. There is probably a large reduction...

How successful are healthy eating programmes in preschools, kindergartens and childcare settings? Key messages • Healthy eating programmes delivered in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings (e.g. preschools, kindergarten, family day care) may improve child diet quality, likely increase fruit consumption, may have favourable effects on vegetable consumption, and likely have no impact on consumption of less healthy foods and sugar-sweetened drinks. They may have favourable effects on child weight and may reduce the risk of being overweight or obese. • We don't know if healthy...

Antiviral drugs for prevention of hepatitis B virus mother-to-child transmission in pregnant women living with both human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis B virus Review question Can antenatal (administered during pregnancy) antiviral combination drugs prevent transfer of hepatitis B virus from mother to baby in pregnant women suffering from both human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV)? Key messages The evidence from five small randomised clinical trials showed neither beneficial nor harmful effects of tenofovir-containing antiviral combination drugs compared with...

Digital interventions for delivering exercise in people with Cystic Fibrosis Review question What are the benefits and risks of using digital interventions for delivering or monitoring, or both, physical activity in people with cystic fibrosis (CF)? Key messages Taken together, the results of these trials suggest the following. – Using a web-based application to record, monitor, and set goals on physical activity plus usual care may result in little to no difference on physical activity and pulmonary exacerbations (flare up of disease) compared to usual care alone. – The evidence is very...

What are the effects of policies that regulate how drugs can be marketed? Key messages Many countries have introduced policies to regulate how the pharmaceutical industry is allowed to market its products. However, we do not know what impact these policies have because there is a lack of well-conducted studies. What are drug marketing policies? It is very expensive to develop new drugs and bring them to the market. The pharmaceutical industry therefore uses a lot of resources to promote their drugs and increase their use. They often encourage patients and consumers to use these drugs, and...