Clinical effectiveness of convalescent plasma in hospitalized patients with COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

AIMS: Given the variability of previously reported results, this systematic review aims to determine the clinical effectiveness of convalescent plasma employed in the treatment of hospitalized patients diagnosed with COVID-19. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review of controlled clinical trials assessing treatment with convalescent plasma for hospitalized patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The outcomes were mortality, clinical improvement, and ventilation requirement. RESULTS: A total of 51 studies were retrieved from the databases. Five articles were finally included in the data extraction and qualitative and quantitative synthesis of results. The overall risk of bias in the reviewed articles was established at low-risk only in two trials. The meta-analysis suggests that there is no benefit of convalescent plasma compared with standard care or placebo in reducing the overall mortality and the ventilation requirement. However, there could be a benefit for the clinical improvement in patients treated with plasma. CONCLUSION: Current results led to assume that the convalescent plasma transfusion cannot reduce the mortality or ventilation requirement in hospitalized patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection. More controlled clinical trials conducted with methodologies that ensure a low risk of bias are still needed.The reviews of this paper are available via the supplemental material section.

Clinical effectiveness of drugs in hospitalized patients with COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The aim was to assess the clinical effectiveness of drugs used in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 infection. We conducted a systematic review of randomized clinical trials assessing treatment with remdesivir, chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir, ritonavir, dexamethasone, and convalescent plasma, for hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The outcomes were mortality, clinical improvement, duration of ventilation, duration of oxygen support, duration of hospitalization, virological clearance, and severe adverse events. A total of 48 studies were retrieved from the databases. Eleven articles were finally included in the data extraction and qualitative synthesis of results. The meta-analysis suggests a benefit of dexamethasone versus standard care in the reduction of risk of mortality at day 28; and the clinical improvement at days 14 and 28 in patients treated with remdesivir. We can conclude that dexamethasone would have a better result in hospitalized patients, especially in low-resources settings. The analysis of the main treatments proposed for hospitalized patients is of vital importance to reduce mortality in low-income countries, since the COVID-19 pandemic had an economic impact worldwide with the loss of jobs and economic decline in countries with scarce resources.The reviews of this paper are available via the supplemental material section.

Cnidoscolus aconitifolius: therapeutic use and phytochemical properties. Literature review / Cnidoscolus aconitifolius: usos terapéuticos y propiedades fitoquímicas. Revisión de la literatura

Abstract Introduction: Medicinal plants have been traditionally used to cure or alleviate infectious and non-infectious diseases. They are widely accepted due to their low cost and low toxicity indexes. These plants are frequently used in cases involving skin irritation, superficial wounds, insect bites, and snake bites. Objective: To compile available evidence on the main therapeutic uses and phytochemical components of Cnidoscolus aconitifolius (popularly known as chaya), a plant that grows in tropical regions of Mexico and Central America. Materials and methods: A literature review of studies on C. aconitifolius published until 2017 was conducted in the BIREME, PubMed/Medline, Elsevier and SciELO databases. Descriptors "Cnidoscolus" and "aconitifolius" were used for the literature search, and no language restrictions were applied. Results: 82 articles were retrieved after completing the initial search. Once the studies were filtered by title (descriptors in the title) and duplicates were removed, 18 articles were reviewed. Based on the information found, it was possible to confirm that this plant has multiple health benefits. Conclusions: The traditional therapeutic use of Cnidoscolus aconitifolius is backed by scientific evidence. Therefore, further research aimed at identifying new phytochemical properties of this plant should be conducted to establish alternative therapies for treating different conditions.

Resumen Introducción. El uso tradicional de plantas medicinales para tratar diferentes enfermedades, ya sean infecciosas o no, es ampliamente aceptado debido a su bajo costo y sus bajos índices de toxicidad. Estas plantas son frecuentemente usadas en casos que involucran irritaciones de la piel, heridas superficiales, picaduras de insectos y mordeduras de víboras. Objetivo. Recopilar la información disponible sobre los principales usos terapéuticos y los componentes fitoquímicos de Cnidoscolus aconitifolius, una planta conocida popularmente como chaya y que crece en regiones tropicales de México y Centroamérica. Materiales y métodos. Se realizó una revisión de la literatura sobre C. aconitifolius publicada hasta 2017 en las bases de datos BIREME, PubMed/Medline, Elsevier y SciELO. Para la búsqueda se emplearon los descriptores "Cnidoscolus" y "aconitifolius", y no se aplicaron filtros de idioma. Resultados. Se identificaron 82 artículos luego de completar la búsqueda inicial. Después de filtrar los estudios por título (presencia de descriptores de búsqueda en el título) y remover duplicados, se incluyeron 18 artículos en la revisión. De acuerdo a la información encontrada, fue posible confirmar que esta planta ofrece diversos beneficios para la salud. Conclusiones. El uso terapéutico tradicional de la chaya está sustentado por evidencia científica, por lo que se sugiere realizar más investigaciones centradas en la identificación de nuevas propiedades fitoquímicas de esta planta y, así, establecer alternativas terapéuticas para distintas afecciones.

Social Participation Strategies and Resilience in Mexican Population Affected by the 2017 Earthquakes.

OBJECTIVE: To describe social participation strategies and resilience in the people affected by the 2017 earthquakes in Mexico. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out with 1504 participants from Mexico City, State of Mexico, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Puebla, and Morelos in November and December 2017. A nonprobabilistic convenience sampling method was used to recruit voluntary participants who met the inclusion criteria: age 18 or over and residents in damaged states at the time of the earthquakes. Postearthquake social participation strategies were assessed with the formats used in the postearthquake Chilean survey in 2010. The Spanish-validated version of the resilience scale RS-14 was applied for measuring resilience in the Mexican population. RESULTS: The most frequent social participation strategies were related to emotional support and aid supplying water, food, and clothing. The highest resilience was observed in the state of Oaxaca and in Mexico City. Men, people age 40 or over, and people who defined themselves as indigenous were the most resilient. CONCLUSIONS: Factors related to resilience were male gender, age over 40, did not participate in activities of help to the community, no household damage, and belonging to an indigenous community.