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Each row is one question a systematic review asked: who, what, compared with what, and which outcome, with the effect it found and how certain that is. Words match anywhere in the field.
1,463 questions in 125 reviews · Anaesthesia
current versionsNo studies 197 · 13.5%Ungraded 203 · 13.9%Very low 307 · 21%Low 441 · 30.1%Moderate 245 · 16.7%High 70 · 4.8%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
| Question | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Hypotension (requiring treatment with inotropes or vasopressors during the period of study drug administration) · adults undergoing cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.19 [0.87, 1.64] | 9 studies · 1413 participants | Low |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Cardiac mortality (within 30‐days after surgery: sudden death or death resulting from a primarily identifiable cardiac cause.) · adults undergoing non‐cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 5 studies · 12525 participants | High |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Myocardial infarction (within 30‐days after surgery: as detected on an electrocardiogram or trans‐oesophageal echocardiogram) · adults undergoing non‐cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 12 studies · 13907 participants | Moderate |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Acute stroke (within 30‐days after surgery: new focal neurologic deficit with signs and symptoms lasting longer than 24 hours) · adults undergoing non‐cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 7 studies · 11542 participants | High |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Bradycardia (requiring pharmacological or pacemaker treatment during the period of study drug administration) · adults undergoing non‐cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 16 studies · 14035 participants | Moderate |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Hypotension (requiring treatment with inotropes or vasopressors during the period of study drug administration) · adults undergoing non‐cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 15 studies · 13738 participants | Moderate |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control All‐cause mortality (within 30‐days after surgery: any reported death) · adults undergoing cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.52 [0.26, 1.04] | 16 studies · 1947 participants | Moderate |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Cardiac mortality (within 30‐days after surgery: sudden death or death resulting from a primarily identifiable cardiac cause) · adults undergoing cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 22 participants | Ungraded |
Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists vs control Myocardial infarction (within 30‐days after surgery: sudden death or death resulting from a primarily identifiable cardiac cause) · adults undergoing cardiac surgery Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists for the prevention of cardiac complications among adults undergoing surgery (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.01 [0.43, 2.4] | 8 studies · 782 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery All‐cause mortality (30 days)—cardiac surgery · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.73 [0.35, 1.52] | 24 studies · 3783 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery Cerebrovascular events—non‐cardiac surgery · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.59 [0.93, 2.71] | 5 studies · 9150 participants | Low |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery Ventricular arrhythmias—non‐cardiac surgery ECG · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.68 [0.31, 1.49] | 5 studies · 476 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery All supraventricular arrhythmias—non‐cardiac surgery ECG · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.73 [0.57, 0.94] | 8 studies · 8744 participants | High |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery Bradycardia—non‐cardiac surgery ECG · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 2.23 [1.48, 3.36] | 23 studies · 11033 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery Hypotension—non‐cardiac surgery · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.5 [1.38, 1.64] | 22 studies · 10947 participants | High |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery Acute myocardial infarction—cardiac surgery · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.04 [0.71, 1.51] | 22 studies · 3553 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery Cerebrovascular events—cardiac surgery · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.52 [0.58, 4.02] | 4 studies · 1400 participants | Low |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery Ventricular arrhythmias—cardiac surgery ECG · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.37 [0.24, 0.58] | 12 studies · 2292 participants | Moderate |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery All supraventricular arrhythmias—cardiac surgery ECG · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.44 [0.36, 0.53] | 48 studies · 6420 participants | High |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery Bradycardia—cardiac surgery ECG · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.61 [0.97, 2.66] | 8 studies · 660 participants | Low |
Beta‐blocker vs control—cardiac surgery Hypotension—cardiac surgery · patients with coronary heart disease and/or valvular heart disease Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.54 [0.67, 3.51] | 6 studies · 558 participants | Low |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery All‐cause mortality (30 days)—non‐cardiac surgery · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.25 [1, 1.57] | 13 studies · 11413 participants | Low |
Beta‐blocker vs control—non‐cardiac surgery Acute myocardial infarction—non‐cardiac surgery · patients with conditions requiring non‐cardiac surgery Perioperative beta‐blockers for preventing surgery‐related mortality and morbidity (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.73 [0.61, 0.87] | 14 studies · 10958 participants | High |
Thoracic epidural anaesthesia vs conventional pain control Persistent pain 3 to 18 months after thoracotomy (We defined persistent postsurgical pain as new pain that did not exist before the operation, measured using differences in scores based on validated pain scales; patient interview between 3 to 18 m... · people undergoing open thoracotomy Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | OR 0.52 [0.32, 0.84] | 7 studies · 499 participants | Moderate |
Intervention NR Adverse effects of continuous local anaesthetic infusion ‐ not reported · women with breast cancer undergoing elective surgery Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Thoracic epidural anaesthesia vs conventional pain control Adverse effects of epidural anaesthesia ‐ not reported · people undergoing open thoracotomy Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Regional anaesthesia vs conventional pain control Persistent pain 3 to 12 months after breast cancer surgery (We defined persistent postsurgical pain as new pain that did not exist before the operation, measured using differences in scores based on validated pain scales; patient interview between... · women with breast cancer undergoing elective surgery Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | OR 0.43 [0.28, 0.68] | 18 studies · 1297 participants | Low |
Regional anaesthesia vs conventional pain control Adverse effects of paravertebral block for breast cancer surgery · women with breast cancer undergoing elective surgery Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Intervention NR Persistent pain 3 to 8 months after caesarean section (We defined persistent postsurgical pain as new pain that did not exist before the operation, measured using differences in scores based on validated pain scales; patient interview between 3 to... · women after caesarean section Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | OR 0.46 [0.28, 0.78] | 4 studies · 551 participants | Moderate |
Intervention NR Adverse effects of local or regional anaesthesia ‐ not reported · women after caesarean section Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Intervention NR Persistent pain 3 to 55 months after iliac crest bone graft harvesting (We defined persistent postsurgical pain as new pain that did not exist before the operation, measured using differences in scores based on validated pain scales; patient inter... · people after iliac crest bone graft harvesting Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | OR 0.2 [0.04, 1.09] | 3 studies · 123 participants | Low |
Intervention NR Adverse effects of continuous local anaesthetic infusion ‐ not reported · people after iliac crest bone graft harvesting Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Intervention NR Persistent pain 3 to 6 months after breast cancer surgery (We defined persistent postsurgical pain as new pain that did not exist before the operation, measured using differences in scores based on validated pain scales; patient interview between ... · women with breast cancer undergoing elective surgery Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent… (2018) · Cochrane | OR 0.24 [0.08, 0.69] | 2 studies · 97 participants | Moderate |
Aromatherapy vs placebo Nausea severity · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 6 studies · 241 participants | Low |
Peppermint vs placebo Patient satisfaction with treatment Measured by a validated scale · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Isopropyl alcohol vs standard treatment Nausea severity Measured by a validated scale or medical or nursing observation · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Isopropyl alcohol vs standard treatment Nausea duration (measured as nausea‐free at end of treatment) Assessed by time (minutes) to 50% reduction in nausea score Scale from: 0 to 120 · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 176 participants | Moderate |
Isopropyl alcohol vs standard treatment Use of rescue antiemetics Assessed by proportion requiring antiemetics · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.67 [0.46, 0.98] | 4 studies · 215 participants | Moderate |
Isopropyl alcohol vs standard treatment Patient satisfaction with treatment · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | RR 1.12 [0.62, 2.03] | 2 studies · 172 participants | Very low |
Isopropyl alcohol vs standard treatment Adverse events (common reactions to aromatherapy include skin rashes, dyspnoea, headache, cardiac arrhythmias, hypotension, hypertension or dizziness) · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Isopropyl alcohol vs saline Nausea severity Measured by a validated scale or medical or nursing observation · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Isopropyl alcohol vs saline Nausea duration (nausea‐free at end of treatment) Measured by participant self‐report or medical or nursing observation · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Isopropyl alcohol vs saline Use of rescue antiemetics Assessed by proportion requiring rescue antiemetics · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.39 [0.12, 1.24] | 4 studies · 291 participants | Very low |
Isopropyl alcohol vs saline Adverse events (common reactions to aromatherapy include skin rashes, dyspnoea, headache, cardiac arrhythmias, hypotension, hypertension or dizziness) · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Aromatherapy vs placebo Nausea duration (nausea‐free at end of treatment) Assessed by numbers of participants · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | RR 3.25 [0.31, 34.33] | 4 studies · 193 participants | Very low |
Isopropyl alcohol vs saline Patient satisfaction with treatment Measured by a validated scale · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Aromatherapy vs placebo Proportion requiring rescue antiemetics Assessed by numbers of participants · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | RR 0.6 [0.37, 0.97] | 7 studies · 609 participants | Low |
Aromatherapy vs placebo Adverse events (common reactions to aromatherapy include skin rashes, dyspnoea, headache, cardiac arrhythmias, hypotension, hypertension or dizziness) · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Aromatherapy vs placebo Patient satisfaction with treatment Measured by a validated scale · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Peppermint vs placebo Nausea severity · adults and children having any type of surgical procedure under general anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia or sedation,… Aromatherapy for treatment of postoperative nausea and vomiting (2018) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 4 studies · 115 participants | Low |