All articles tagged with #randomized controlled trials
A Prevention review of 23 randomized trials reports that daily melatonin (3–10 mg) provides moderate relief for chronic musculoskeletal pain and improves sleep quality, though it shows little benefit for post-operative pain; experts caution that melatonin isn’t a universal fix and advise discussing dosage and overall pain management with a clinician due to possible side effects like grogginess, headache, and nausea.
A comprehensive IOF review finds vitamin D deficiency is common in inflammatory rheumatic diseases and linked to higher disease activity and worse symptoms, but current evidence does not support vitamin D as a disease-modifying therapy. Supplementation safely corrects deficiency and may offer modest benefits for those with low baseline vitamin D, yet large randomized trials and Mendelian randomization studies do not show a causal role in disease onset or remission. Vitamin D remains important for bone and muscle health, but better-designed trials are needed to identify which patients (if any) may experience meaningful immunological or clinical benefits; maintain serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D around 30 ng/mL for skeletal health, while higher levels for immune modulation remain uncertain.
A 2024 meta-analysis of 29 randomized controlled trials (3,918 participants) found that omega-3 supplementation via fish oil can moderately reduce aggression in the short term (up to 28%), across ages and different settings, suggesting omega-3 could be a helpful adjunct to other interventions, though it is not a cure and longer-term research is needed.
A 2024 meta-analysis of 29 randomized controlled trials (3,918 participants) found that omega-3 supplementation (fish oil) can reduce aggression by up to 28% in the short term across diverse ages and settings, with trials averaging 16 weeks and showing reductions in both reactive and proactive aggression; longer-term studies are needed to confirm and extend these findings.
An umbrella review of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials and observational studies has assessed the risks and benefits of cannabis use. The review found that cannabis-based medicines increased adverse events related to the central nervous system, psychological effects, and vision in people with mixed conditions. Cannabidiol was found to be effective in reducing seizures but increased pneumonia and gastrointestinal adverse events. Cannabis-based medicines or cannabinoids were found to reduce chronic pain but increased psychological distress. The review also highlighted the harmful effects of cannabis use during adolescence and early adulthood, in people with mental health disorders, during pregnancy, and while driving. Overall, the review supports the avoidance of cannabis in certain populations and highlights the need for caution in its use.
A systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing mindfulness-based programs (MBPs) for mental health promotion found that MBPs reduced average psychological distress between 1 and 6 months post-intervention with a small to moderate effect size. The study also explored whether baseline distress, gender, age, education, and dispositional mindfulness modified the effect of MBPs on distress, but no clear indications of modification were found. The results suggest that group-based teacher-led MBPs generally reduce psychological distress among volunteering community adults, but more research is needed to identify sources of variability in outcomes at an individual level.
Patients with long COVID-19 had lower levels of vitamin D than other COVID-19 survivors, particularly those with brain fog, according to a retrospective, case-matched study. The study suggests that vitamin D levels should be evaluated in COVID-19 patients after hospital discharge and that vitamin D supplementation could represent a possible preventive strategy in reducing the burden of COVID-19 sequelae. However, further randomized controlled trials are needed to establish the optimal timing and dosage of supplementation.
A systematic review and network meta-analysis of 98 randomized controlled trials involving 15,134 participants found that the comparative effectiveness and safety of analgesic medicines for acute non-specific low back pain are uncertain. Low or very low confidence was noted in evidence for reduced pain intensity after treatment with tolperisone, aceclofenac plus tizanidine, pregabalin, and 14 other medicines compared with placebo. Increased adverse events had moderate to very low confidence with tramadol, paracetamol plus sustained release tramadol, baclofen, and paracetamol plus tramadol compared with placebo. Until higher quality randomized controlled trials of head-to-head comparisons are published, clinicians and patients are recommended to take a cautious approach to manage acute non-specific low back pain with analgesic medicines.