The Cochrane Library, 2007, Issue 1

- 24 Jan 2007

By John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Page 1 of 9

Subcutaneous injection of pollen-extract can ward off symptoms of hayfever
Injecting small amounts of pollen-extract just below the skin in people who have hayfever can desensitize them to the pollen and reduce their symptoms. A Cochrane Review shows that it also reduces the amount of medication they use.
Beta blockers are less effective than other drugs for first-line treatment of high blood pressure
Beta blocker drugs are commonly used in the initial attempts to lower blood pressure. However a Cochrane Review shows that they were not as good at reducing death or the severity of disease as other classes of drugs. Drugs that perform better include thiazides, calcium channel blockers and renin angiotensin system inhibitors.
Viagra-like drugs can treat erectile dysfunction in men with diabetes
Around half of all men with diabetes have at least one episode during the course of their condition when they fail to maintain an erection sufficient for sexual intercourse. Many different strategies have been used to overcome this, but a Cochrane Review of clinical trials shows that three phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitors, sildenafil (Viagra), vardenafil (Levitra) and tadalafil (Cialis) increased diabetic men's satisfaction with their sexual life, compared to placebo.
Coaching patients over 65 can help them to take an active role in general practice consultations
Older patients (+65 years) who are given pre-visit information booklets or a pre-visit coaching session ask more questions when they see a doctor than untrained patients. The trained patients also get more information from their doctors per question asked, and were also in a position to supply the doctor with more information. This added confidence did not, however, cause an increase in the length of appointments.
School meals good, especially for poor children
School meals can improve physical and mental health of disadvantaged children. Good nutrition is essential for healthy child development. One way of boosting children's intake is to give them food at school. Cochrane Reviewers looked to see whether school feeding programmes could produce benefits in terms of the children's physical, mental and psychosocial health.