A systematic review and meta-analysis of published randomized controlled trials was conducted to collate evidence from studies implementing ancient grains and investigate the impact of ancient grain consumption on health outcomes of patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM).
Twenty-nine randomized controlled trials were included, and 13 were meta-analyzed. Interventions ranged from 1 day to 24 weeks; most samples were affected by DM type 2 (n = 28 studies) and the ancient grains used were oats (n = 10 studies), brown rice (n = 6 studies), buckwheat (n = 4 studies), chia (n = 3 studies), Job's Tears (n = 2 studies), and barley, Khorasan and millet (n = 1 study). Thirteen studies that used oats, brown rice, and chia provided data for a quantitative synthesis. Four studies using oats showed a small to moderate beneficial effect on health outcomes including LDL-c (n = 717, MD: 0.30 mmol/l, 95% CI: 0.42 to -0.17, Z = 4.61, p < 0.05, I
For adults affected by DM type 2, the use of oats may improve lipidic profile. Further experimental designs are needed in interventional research to better understand the effects of ancient grains on diabetes health outcomes.
CRD42023422386.

Use of ancient grains for the management of diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

We carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis of epidemiologic studies on the association between occupational exposure to glyphosate and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and multiple myeloma (MM).
We conducted a systematic search of the literature, and identified 18 relevant publications, from which we extracted results from seven non-overlapping studies of NHL and three of MM. We performed random-effects meta-analyses for ever-exposure to glyphosate, dose-response, and risk of specific NHL subtypes.
The meta-relative risk (RR) of NHL was 1.03 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.86-1.21), that of MM was 1.04 (95% CI 0.67-1.41). The meta-RR of NHL for highest category of exposure was 1.49 (95% CI 0.37-2.61; 3 studies). The meta-RR for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) was 1.31 (95% CI 0.93-1.75); that for follicular lymphoma was 0.82 (95% CI 0.93-1.70), and that for chronic lymphocytic leukemia was 0.85 (95% CI 0.20-1.49). There was indication of publication bias for studies on NHL.
Our meta-analysis provided no overall evidence of an increased risk for both NHL and MM in subjects occupationally exposed to glyphosate. In secondary analyses we detected a small increase in risk for the category with highest level of exposure as well as for DLBCL. The evidence of publication bias suggests caution in the interpretation of the results.
Sono state condotte una revisione sistematica e una meta-analisi degli studi epidemiologici sull’associazione tra esposizione professionale a glifosato e rischio di linfoma non Hodgkin (NHL) e mieloma multiplo (MM).
È stata effettuata una ricerca sistematica della letteratura che ha portato all’identificazione di 18 pubblicazioni rilevanti, da cui sono stati estratti i risultati di sette studi indipendenti sul NHL e tre sul MM. È stata effettuata una meta-analisi con modello ad effetti casuali per esposizione a glifosato, inclusi i risultati su dose-risposta e su sottotipi specifici di NHL.
Il rischio relativo (RR) della meta-analisi per NHL è risultato pari a 1,03 (intervallo di confidenza al 95% [CI] 0,86-1,21), e quello per MM pari a 1,04 (IC al 95% 0,67-1,41). Il RR per NHL nella più alta categoria di esposizione è risultato pari a 1,49 (IC 95% 0,37-2,61; 3 studi). Il RR per linfoma diffuso a grandi cellule B (DLBCL) è risultato pari a 1,31 (IC 95% 0,93-1,75); quello per il linfoma follicolare pari a 0,82 (IC 95% 0,93-1,70) e quello per la leucemia linfatica cronica pari a 0,85 (IC 95% 0,20-1,49). Si è riscontrata un’indicazione di bias di pubblicazione negli studi su NHL.
In generale, questa meta-analisi non ha fornito la prova di un aumento del rischio sia per NHL che per MM in soggetti esposti professionalmente a glifosato. In analisi secondarie è stato evidenziato un leggero aumento del rischio per la categoria con il più alto livello di esposizione e per DLBCL. L’evidenza di un bias di pubblicazione suggerisce cautela nell’interpretazione dei risultati.

Exposure to glyphosate and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and multiple myeloma: an updated meta-analysis.

Comment on Wu et al. (2022) 'The effectiveness of distraction as preoperative anxiety management technique in pediatric patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials'.

Authors response to "Comment on Wu et al (2022) 'The effectiveness of distraction as preoperative anxiety management technique in pediatric patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials'".

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional bowel disease characterized by abdominal pain or discomfort associated with altered bowel habits. Several clinical studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS. Many systematic reviews of acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS have been published in recent years, but their results are not entirely consistent.
To evaluate the methodological, reporting, and evidence quality of systematic reviews of acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS.
Systematic reviews of acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS published before February 20, 2023 were searched in eight databases: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Data, VIP Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, and China Biology Medicine. The keywords used for literature search were acupuncture, moxibustion, systematic review, meta-analysis, and irritable bowel syndrome.
Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials of acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS were included.
Relevant information was independently extracted by two investigators. The A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR 2), Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA 2020), and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) were used to evaluate the methodological quality, reporting quality and evidence quality, respectively.
A total of 342 studies were retrieved and 15 systematic reviews were included. The results of AMSTAR 2 showed low methodological quality in 2 studies and very low methodological quality in the remaining 13 studies, with main issues being failure to register a protocol, incomplete search strategy, not providing a list of excluded studies, incomplete consideration of the risk of bias in the included studies, and a failure to assess the publication bias. The results of PRISMA 2020 showed seriously deficient reporting quality of 2 studies, somewhat deficient reporting quality of 12 studies, and relatively complete reporting quality of 1 study, with the main problems being lack of a complete search strategy, non-availability of a list of excluded studies with justification for their exclusion, not conducting heterogeneity and sensitivity analyses, not evaluating the credibility of the evidence, and not registering the protocol. The results of GRADE showed that the quality of the evidence is low or very low.
Most included systematic reviews interpreted findings to suggest that acupuncture and moxibustion have benefits for IBS. However, there is a need to improve the methodological, reporting and evidence quality of the systematic reviews. Larger, multicenter, rigorously designed randomized controlled trials and high-quality systematic reviews are required to obtain more robust evidence.
Ma YY, Hao Z, Chen ZY, Shen YX, Liu HR, Wu HG, Bao CH. Acupuncture and moxibustion for irritable bowel syndrome: An umbrella systematic review. J Integr Med. 2024; 22(1): 22-31.

Papers