Table of contents

Treatment

• Elective surfactant increased median duration of mechanical ventilation in preterm infants with mild to moderate respiratory distress syndrome (7 January, 2005)
• Review: no evidence exists that paracetamol and ibuprofen differ for short term pain relief or safety in children, but ibuprofen more effectively reduces fever (7 January, 2005)
• Review: topical mupirocin or fusidic acid may be more effective than oral antibiotics for limited non-bullous impetigo (7 January, 2005)
• Review: a single dose of nasal decongestant reduces congestion in the short term in adults with the common cold; insufficient evidence exists on the effectiveness of repeated doses (7 January, 2005)
• Review: all forms of nicotine replacement therapy are effective for smoking cessation (7 January, 2005)
• Review: long term use of common medications for asthma reduces exacerbations in adults (7 January, 2005)
• Review: levonorgestrel and mifepristone are effective emergency methods for preventing pregnancy after unprotected intercourse (7 January, 2005)
• Nebulised lidocaine before nasogastric tube insertion reduced patient discomfort but increased risk of nasal bleeding (7 January, 2005)
• A nurse led educational intervention for cancer pain management was effective in cancer patients in ambulatory settings (7 January, 2005)
• Review: chemotherapy plus supportive care improves survival and quality of life in advanced or metastatic gastrointestinal cancer more than supportive care alone (7 January, 2005)
• Review: enteral nutrition reduces infections, need for surgical intervention, and length of hospital stay more than parenteral nutrition in acute pancreatitis (7 January, 2005)
• Review: topical NSAIDs reduce pain in osteoarthritis only during the first 2 weeks of use (7 January, 2005)
• Review: paracetamol reduces pain in osteoarthritis but is less effective than NSAIDs (7 January, 2005)
• Review: adding non-invasive positive pressure ventilation to usual care reduces treatment failure in respiratory failure (7 January, 2005)
• Review: hospital at home is as effective as inpatient care for mortality and hospital readmissions in patients with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (7 January, 2005)
• Review: evidence from individually randomised trials shows that hip protectors do not reduce hip fractures in elderly people (7 January, 2005)