Table of contents

Therapeutics

• Systematic review: For type 2 diabetes poorly controlled by metformin monotherapy, the addition of any non-insulin antidiabetic drug reduces HbA1c to a similar extent, but with differing effects on weight and hypoglycaemic risk (21 March, 2011) Free

  Srikanth Bellary
• Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: Calcium supplementation during pregnancy reduces risk of high blood pressure, pre-eclampsia and premature birth compared with placebo? (3 November, 2010)

  Baha M Sibai
• Systematic review: The additional value of self-monitoring of blood glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes not using insulin is ‘not proven’ (16 November, 2010)

  Nanne Kleefstra, Henk J G Bilo
• Randomised controlled trial: Supervised exercise therapy provided by local physiotherapists improves walking distance in patients with claudication (21 March, 2011)

  Andrew W Gardner
• Randomised controlled trial: Early initiation of dialysis in patients with chronic progressive kidney failure does not confer a mortality advantage when compared with an approach of late initiation combined with appearance of symptoms or signs of uraemia (3 November, 2010)

  Bruce Spinowitz
• Randomised controlled trial: Fenofibrate and statin therapy, compared with placebo and statin, slows the development of retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients of 10 years duration: the ACCORD study (21 March, 2011)

  David R Matthews
• Randomised controlled trial: Sensor-augmented insulin pump more effective than multiple daily insulin injections for reducing HbA1C in people with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes (11 January, 2011)

  Jeroen Hermanides, J Hans DeVries
• Randomised controlled trial: Compared with placebo, trimethoprim–sulfamethoxazole does not reduce rates of treatment failure after drainage of uncomplicated skin abscesses, but reduces the occurrence of new lesions in the following 30 days (7 December, 2010)

  Daniel J Elliott, Marci L Drees
• Randomised controlled trial: No difference in improvement in physical function between splint and cast at 6 weeks in children with minimally angulated fractures of the distal radius (7 December, 2010)

  Eric W Edmonds
• Randomised controlled trial: Coronary artery surgery for multivessel coronary artery disease reduces 10-year risk of myocardial infarction compared with medical treatment or percutaneous coronary intervention (11 January, 2011)

  Vankeepuram S Srinivas, Seshasayee Narasimhan
• Systematic review: Large review finds no clinically important effect of glucosamine or chondroitin on pain in people with osteoarthritis of the knee or hip but results are questionable and likely due to heterogeneity (11 January, 2011)

  Olivier Bruyère
• Randomised controlled trial: Naltrexone–buproprion causes weight loss in overweight and obese adults (12 January, 2011)

  Steven R Smith
• Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis: Hysterectomy, endometrial destruction and the levonorgestrel intrauterine system are all effective therapies for heavy menstrual bleeding; satisfaction rates are highest after hysterectomy (12 January, 2011)

  Ian S Fraser