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To assess the present evidence regarding the efficiency, safety, and potential risks of pharmacotherapy used for Parkinson's disease psychosis (PDPsy) treatment. We searched the following databases: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, ISI Web of Science, and Embase using the following terms: atypical antipsychotics, pimavanserin, olanzapine, quetiapine, clozapine, Parkinson's disease and psychosis. We systematically reviewed all randomized placebo-controlled trials comparing an atypical antipsychotic with a placebo. A total of 13 randomized placebo-controlled trials for a total 1142 cases were identified involving pimavanserin (n=4), clozapine (n=2), olanzapine (n=3), and quetiapine (n=4). For each atypical antipsychotic, a descriptive synthesis and meta-analyses was presented. Pimavanserin was associated with a significant improvement in psychotic symptoms compared to a placebo without worsening motor function. Clozapine was efficacious in alleviating psychotic symptoms and did not exacerbate motor function either. Quetiapine and Olanzapine did not demonstrate significant differences in reducing psychotic symptoms but may aggravate motor function. There is strong evidence that pimavanserin is effective for the treatment of PDPsy. Clozapine is also recommended but should be used with caution due to its side effects. In the future, more well-designed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are needed to confirm and update the findings reported in this meta-analysis.

Highlights•The first study to examine the characteristics, methodological and reporting quality of systematic reviews and meta-analyses in social science journals in China. •A total of 200 systematic reviews were identified. The mean AMSTAR score and PRISMA score was 8.99 ± 3.36 points and 14.74 ± 3.96 points, respectively. Both scores differed based on the number of authors, funds, and publication date. Publishing years was related to both methodological quality ( P = 0.001) and reporting quality ( P < 0.01). •Publication year was associated with the methodological quality and reporting quality. The number of SRs/meta-analyses in CSSCI databases has gradually improved over time. •Although many systematic reviews and meta-analyses have been published in top Chinese journals, the methodological and reporting quality is troubling. This study’ suggestions for enhancing SR/meta-analysis in Chinese social science studies were proposed to provide a reference for the standardization of SR and meta-analysis in the future.

Background One of the most challenging issues for the elderly population is the clinical state of frailty. Frailty is defined as a cumulative decline across psychological, physical, and social functioning. Hospitalization is one of the most stressful events for older people who are becoming frail. The aim of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of interventions focused on management of frailty in hospitalized frail older adults. Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis of research was conducted using the Medline, Embase, Cochrane, ProQuest, CINAHL, SCOPUS and Web of Science electronic databases for papers published between 2000 and 2019. Randomized controlled studies were included that were aimed at the management of frailty in hospitalized older adults. The outcomes which were examined included frailty; physical, psychological, and social domains; length of stay in hospital; re-hospitalization; mortality; patient satisfaction; and the need for post discharge placement. Results After screening 7976 records and 243 full-text articles, seven studies (3 interventions) were included, involving 1009 hospitalized older patients. The quality of these studies was fair to poor and the risk of publication bias in the studies was low. Meta-analysis of the studies showed statistically significant differences between the intervention and control groups for the management of frailty in hospitalized older adults (ES = 0.35; 95% CI: 0. 067–0.632; z = 2.43; P  < 0.015). However, none of the included studies evaluated social status, only a few of the studies evaluated other secondary outcomes. The analysis also showed that a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment unit intervention was effective in addressing physical and psychological frailty, re-hospitalization, mortality, and patient satisfaction. Conclusions Interventions for hospitalized frail older adults are effective in management of frailty. Multidimensional interventions conducted by a multidisciplinary specialist team in geriatric settings are likely to be effective in the care of hospitalized frail elderly. Due to the low number of RCTs carried out in a hospital setting and the low quality of existing studies, there is a need for new RCTs to be carried out to generate a protocol appropriate for frail older people.

Hypertension, particularly untreated, leads to serious complications and contributes to high costs incurred by the whole society. The aim of the review was to carry out a social and economic comparison of various categories of hypertension costs from different countries. The study was a systematic review. PubMed, Cochrane Library and Google Scholar databases were searched. Hypertension costs were analyzed in 8 cost categories. An attempt was made to determine whether selected economic and social factors (such as HDI or GDP) influenced hypertension costs. The review included data from 15 countries: Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, China, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Poland, Spain, USA, Vietnam and Zimbabwe. The papers included in the review were heterogeneous with respect to cost categories, which made comparisons difficult. The average total costs of hypertension for all the studied countries, calculated per person, amounted to 630.14 Int$, direct costs - 1,497.36 Int$, and indirect costs - 282.34 Int$. The ranking of countries by costs and by selected economic and social indices points at the possible relationship between these indices and hypertension costs. The costs of hypertension calculated per country reached the region of several dozen billion Int$. Other sources usually showed lower costs than those presented in this review. This indicates a growth in costs from year to year and the future increasing burden on society. Globally uniform cost terminology and cost calculation standards need to be developed. That would facilitate making more informed decisions regarding fund allocation in hypertension management schemes.

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children (aged 5-12 years) and adolescents (aged 12-19 years) in Asian countries. Study design: Systematic review and meta-analysis. We comprehensively searched specialised databases for relevant studies conducted in Asian countries between January 1, 1999, and May 30, 2017. Random effects models (using the DerSimonian-Laird method) and generic inverse variance methods were used for quantitative data synthesis. Sensitivity analysis was conducted using the 'leave-one-out' method. Heterogeneity was quantitatively assessed using the index. Systematic review registration: CRD42016033061. Among 22,286 identified citations, 41 studies met the inclusion criteria with = 71,998 and = 353,513 for children and adolescents. The pooled prevalence (overall, boys and girls) was 5.8% ( = 4175), 7.0% ( = 2631) and 4.8% ( = 1651) for obesity in children aged 5-11 years; 8.6% ( = 30,402), 10.1% ( = 17,990) and 6.2% ( = 10,874) for obesity in adolescents age 12-19 years. For overweight in children the values for overall, boys and girls were 11.2% ( = 7900), 11.7% ( = 4280) and 10.9% ( = 3698) respectively; and for overweight in adolescents, 14.6% ( = 46,886), 15.9% (27,183), and 13.7% (20,574). These findings were robust in sensitivity analyses. In children and adolescents a higher percentage of boys than girls are obese (children = 7.0 vs. 4.8%, adolescents = 10.1 vs. 6.2%, < 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, in children and adolescents a higher percentage of boys than girls are overweight (children = 11.7 vs. 10.9%, adolescents = 15.9 vs. 13.7%, < 0.001, respectively). In view of the number of children who are overweight or obese, the associated detrimental effects on health, and the cost to health-care systems, implementation of programmes to monitor and prevent unhealthy weight gain in children and adolescents is needed throughout Asian countries.

Approximately 1% of the world population has now been infected by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). With cases still rising and vaccines just beginning to rollout, we are still several months away from seeing reductions in daily case numbers, hospitalisations, and mortality. Therefore, there is a still an urgent need to control the disease spread by repurposing existing therapeutics. Owing to antiviral, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, and cardioprotective actions, statin therapy has been considered as a plausible approach to improve COVID-19 outcomes. We carried out a meta-analysis to investigate the effect of statins on 3 COVID-19 outcomes: intensive care unit (ICU) admission, tracheal intubation, and death. We systematically searched the PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and ProQuest databases using keywords related to our aims up to November 2, 2020. All published observational studies and randomised clinical trials on COVID-19 and statins were retrieved. Statistical analysis with random effects modelling was performed using STATA16 software. The final selected studies ( = 24 studies; 32,715 patients) showed significant reductions in ICU admission (OR = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.58-1.06; = 10; = 58.5%) and death (OR = 0.70, 95% CI: 0.55-0.88; = 21; = 82.5%) outcomes, with no significant effect on tracheal intubation (OR = 0.79; 95% CI: 0.57-1.11; = 7; = 89.0%). Furthermore, subgroup analysis suggested that death was reduced further by in-hospital application of stains (OR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.22-0.73, = 3; = 82.5%), compared with pre-hospital use (OR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.60-0.98, = 18; = 81.8%). These findings call attention to the need for systematic clinical studies to assess both pre- and in-hospital use of statins as a potential means of reducing COVID-19 disease severity, particularly in terms of reduction of ICU admission and total mortality reduction.

Background Sedentary behaviour is considered to contribute to sarcopenia when combined with physical inactivity. Whether sedentary behaviour is independently associated with sarcopenia remains controversial. The aim of this study is to explore the association between sedentary behaviour and sarcopenia in older adults in community and long-term care facility settings. Methods Eight electronic databases including MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Wanfang were searched from inception until August 2023. The review included cross-sectional and longitudinal studies concerning the association between sedentary behaviour and sarcopenia among participants over 60 years old. Evidence was pooled by both random-effects meta-analysis and narrative synthesis. Subgroup analyses explored variation according to adjustment of physical activity, settings, and measurements of sedentary behaviour and sarcopenia. Quality assessment for individual studies was performed with the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal Checklist. Results Seventeen articles (16 cross-sectional studies and 1 longitudinal study) of 25,788 participants from community or long-term care facility settings were included. The overall quality of the included studies was rated high. Meta-analysis of 14 cross-sectional studies showed that sedentary behaviour was independently positively associated with sarcopenia: pooled odd ratio 1.36 (95% confidence interval, 1.18–1.58). The independent positive association remained in subgroup analyses by adjustment of physical activity, settings, and measurements of sedentary behaviour and sarcopenia. The narrative analysis corroborated the findings of the meta-analysis and provided additional evidence suggesting that interruptions in sedentary periods were linked to a decreased likelihood of developing sarcopenia. Conclusions The findings support the hypothesis that sedentary behaviour is independently positively associated with sarcopenia in older adults, providing vital indications for the development of strategies to prevent sarcopenia. Systematic review registration The systematic review protocol has been registered with the PROSPERO database (CRD42022311399).

Two pneumococcal vaccines currently exist and have been recommended for the prevention of pneumococcal infection in adults 65 years of age and older: the 23-valent polysaccharide (PPV23) and the conjugate 13-valent (PCV13) vaccine. To evaluate and summarize the results from all studies reporting on the vaccine effectiveness of PPV23 in preventing invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in individuals over the age of 50. Systematic database searches were completed in PubMed, Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, and Cochrane. Google Scholar and hand searches of seminal articles and past systematic reviews were employed. Studies were included if they independently evaluated the effect of PPV23 on IPD and/or CAP in adults (50+). Data extraction and quality assessment were both completed independently by two researchers. Quality was assessed using the National Advisory Committee on Immunization methodology for quality assessment. All conflicts were resolved by consensus. The vaccine effectiveness for PPV23 in preventing IPD was 50% (95% CI: 21%–69%) for cohort studies and 54% (95% CI: 32%–69%) for case-control studies. The VE estimates for CAP were 4% (95% CI: -26%–26%) for trials, 17% (95% CI: -26%–45%) for cohort studies, and 7% (95% CI: -10%–21%) for case-control studies. The vaccine effectiveness of PPV23 in preventing IPD and all-cause CAP was consistent with past systematic reviews and similar to the estimates that were reported in the CAPiTA trial evaluating the vaccine effectiveness of PCV13. Consistent benefits were also reported across ecological studies and reports of surveillance data for the general population 50 years and older. The results suggests that the current practice of vaccinating the adults 65 years of age and older with PPV23 would have similar benefits to PCV13 in preventing potential cases of all-serotype IPD and all-cause CAP.

In patients with breast cancer and lymphoma, anthracyclines are associated with early and late dose-related cardiotoxicity. We systematically evaluated the efficacy and harms of the use of β-blockers in breast cancer and lymphoma patients undergoing chemotherapy. We searched five engines, and pre-prints until October 10, 2022, for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating β-blockers for anthracycline-associated cardiotoxicity in breast cancer and lymphoma patients. Primary outcomes were all-cause mortality, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic diameter (LVEDD, LVESD), peak E' velocity, E/A ratio, E/e' ratio, and NT-pro BNP levels. The secondary outcome was heart rate. Inverse variance random effect meta-analyses were performed, and we used GRADE methods to assess quality of evidence (QoE). Twelve RCTs were selected ( = 1,794). Seven RCTs evaluated carvedilol. Mean ages were 39 to 52 years; 88.5% were women; 79.4% had breast cancer, and 11.5% lymphoma. The evidence was very uncertain about the effect of β-blockers on all-cause mortality (RR = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.55 to 1.37, 12 RCTs, = 0%, very low QoE), LVEF (MD = 2.73%, 95% CI: -0.45% to 5.92%, 12 RCTs, = 93%, very low QoE), and heart rate (MD = -9.14 bpm, 95% CI: -15.02 to -3.26, two RCTs, = 87%, very low QoE) vs. controls. β-blockers likely reduced NT-pro BNP levels slightly (MD = -15.35 pg/ml, 95% CI: -22.39 to -8.31, two RCTs, = 0%, moderate QoE). There were no effects on other outcomes, all with very low QoE. Prophylactic use of β-blockers for cardioprotection had little to no effect on all-cause mortality, LVEF or cardiac function outcomes in cancer patients undergoing anthracycline therapy.

Background Acute kidney injury (AKI) is common and it is associated with poor clinical outcomes in premature and low birth weight neonates. This systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to summarize the literature and evaluate the prevalence, risk factors, and mortality of premature and low birth weight neonates with AKI. Methods A systematic search in PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library was performed. Studies on the prevalence, risk factors, diagnosis, and outcomes of acute kidney injury in preterm neonates and neonates with low birth weight were included and analyzed. Results Fifty articles of 10,744 patients were included in this study. The overall rate of AKI from the pooled results of all patients was 25% (95% CI 20–30%) with heterogeneity among studies ( I 2  = 97%; P  < 0.01). Patients with AKI had significantly higher rate of mortality than patients without AKI (odds ratio (OR) = 7.13; 95% CI 5.91–8.60; P  < 0.01). Conclusions AKI was prevalent and was associated with high mortality rate among preterm and low birth weight neonates. Graphical abstract