Cochrane

Anabolic steroids may be beneficial in the treatment of weight loss in HIV-infected individuals. Anabolic steroids include testosterone and its derivatives. One of the functions of testosterone is to help build muscle. Testosterone has been demonstrated to increase muscle mass and lean body mass in testosterone-deficient but otherwise healthy men. Individuals ...

Not enough evidence to say if bed rest in pregnancy helps women and their babies when women have high blood pressure. High blood pressure in pregnant women can contribute to babies being small, being born too soon and having considerable health problems. Women with high blood pressure are often advised to rest in bed either at home or in hospital. It ...

Long term treatment with beta-blocker medication reduces the risk of death in patients with high blood pressure, heart failure and coronary artery disease. But patients who have both COPD and cardiovascular disease sometimes do not receive these medicines because of fears that they may worsen the airways disease. This review of data from 22 randomised ...

Hodgkin's disease (HD) patients are usually treated initially with radiotherapy alone (RT; early stages only), chemotherapy alone (CT) or combined chemo-radiotherapy (CRT). A meta-analysis of data from 37 randomised trials including over 9000 patients was conducted. For early-stage patients, CRT resulted in longer survival and longer HD-free survival ...

Some people with chronic lung disease (COPD - chronic bronchitis or emphysema) have low levels of oxygen in their blood. Oxygen levels might be low all the time, or only at night when breathing slows during sleep. Some people use bottled oxygen through the night at home, to try and improve their breathing. The review of trials found that when people ...

Antibiotics are used to treat infections, such as pneumonia or ear infections, that are caused by bacteria. Over time however, many bacteria have become resistant to antibiotics. This means that even when antibiotics are taken they may fail to cure an infection if a resistant bacteria is present. Bacteria become resistant because antibiotics are used ...

Surgical treatment of glaucoma is usually reserved for serious cases which cannot be controlled by other means such as topical medication or laser. Surgery can be performed in most types of glaucoma in order to reduce the pressure inside the eye which if left uncontrolled can irreversibly damage the optic nerve leading to loss of sight. There are a ...

Three elements are required for human fertilization to occur: an egg, a sperm, and the ability of the egg and sperm to meet. One possible cause of egg and sperm not meeting could be a lack of cervical mucus or mucus that is of poor quality. Mucus in the cervix is thought to help a sperm reach the egg. In 1866, the American gynaecologist James Marion ...

In people with high myopia (refractive error -6 diopters or worse) new blood vessels can grow under the retina of the eye (choroidal neovascularisation). For decades laser coagulation has been used to destroy lesions that are not central. This review found one small study, including 70 participants, which compared laser photocoagulation with no treatment ...

Does low level laser therapy work for treating rheumatoid arthritis? Six studies of medium quality were reviewed and provide the best evidence we have today. Collectively, these studies tested over 220 people with rheumatoid arthritis. The studies compared how well people did while receiving either laser therapy or a 'placebo' (fake) laser therapy. ...