SynthesisBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2012
Drugs for relief of pain in patients with sciatica: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07588126 (Ultrasound Guided Transgluteal Sciatic Nerve Hydrodissection for the Treatment of Sciatica in the Emergency Department), which is not on this map. Cited by 75 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Ultrasound Guided Transgluteal Sciatic Nerve Hydrodissection for the Treatment of Sciatica in the Emergency Department
Who cites it
75 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 208 citations in OpenAlex.
- How effective are physiotherapy interventions in treating people with sciatica? A systematic review and meta-analysis.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2023Pooled it
- The effect of physical activity on health outcomes in people with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury: a rapid systematic review with meta-analysis.BMC public health · 2023Pooled it
- The Methodological Quality of Studies Investigating the Acute Effects of Exercise During Hypoxia Over the Past 40 years: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in physiology · 2022Pooled it
- What Is the Relative Effectiveness of the Various Surgical Treatment Options for Distal Radius Fractures? A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Clinical orthopaedics and related research · 2021Pooled it
- Efficacy and safety of antidepressants for the treatment of back pain and osteoarthritis: systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2021Pooled it
- A mixed-methods systematic review of post-viral fatigue interventions: Are there lessons for long Covid?PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- Anticonvulsants in the treatment of low back pain and lumbar radicular pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne · 2018Pooled it
- Surgery or physical activity in the management of sciatica: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2016Pooled it
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for sciatica.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2016Pooled it
- Are Volar Locking Plates Superior to Percutaneous K-wires for Distal Radius Fractures? A Meta-analysis.Clinical orthopaedics and related research · 2015Pooled it
- Steroids and L-Lysine Aescinate for Acute Radiculopathy Due to a Herniated Lumbar Disk.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2019Trial
- A pragmatic randomised controlled trial of preferred intensity exercise in depressed adult women in the United Kingdom: secondary analysis of individual variability of depression.BMC public health · 2019Trial
- Effect of Gabapentin vs Pregabalin on Pain Intensity in Adults With Chronic Sciatica: A Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA neurology · 2019Trial
- Trial
- Trial
- The clinical and cost-effectiveness of stratified care for patients with sciatica: the SCOPiC randomised controlled trial protocol (ISRCTN75449581).BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2017Trial
- Does early intervention improve outcomes in physiotherapy management of lumbar radicular syndrome? A mixed-methods study protocol.BMJ open · 2017Trial
- Trial
- Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of multiple doses of BG00010, a neurotrophic factor with anti-hyperalgesic effects, in patients with sciatica.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2016Trial
- Epidural steroid injections compared with gabapentin for lumbosacral radicular pain: multicenter randomized double blind comparative efficacy study.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2015Trial
15 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate the efficacy and tolerability of analgesic and adjuvant pain drugs typically administered in primary care for the management of patients with sciatica.
designSystematic review. Data source International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, PsycINFO, Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Clinical Trials (CENTRAL), CINAHL, and LILACS. STUDY SELECTION: Randomised controlled trials assessing the efficacy and tolerability of drugs versus placebo or other treatment for sciatica. DATA EXTRACTION: Two independent reviewers extracted data and assessed methodological quality using the PEDro scale. Pain and disability outcomes were converted to a common 0 to 100 scale. Data were pooled with a random effects model, and the GRADE approach was used in summary conclusions.
resultsTwenty three published reports met the inclusion criteria. The evidence to judge the efficacy of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, muscle relaxants, and opioid analgesics ranged from moderate to low quality. Most of the pooled estimates did not favour the active treatment over placebo. The pooled results of two trials of corticosteroids (mean difference in overall and leg pain -12.2, 95% confidence interval -20.9 to -3.4) and a single trial of the anticonvulsant gabapentin for chronic sciatica (mean difference in overall pain relief -26.6, -38.3 to -14.9) showed some benefits but only in the short term. The median rate of adverse events was 17% (interquartile range 10-30%) for the active drugs and 11% (3-23%) for placebo. Trial limitations included failure to use validated outcome measures, lack of long term follow-up, and small sample size.
conclusionsAs the existing evidence from clinical trials is of low quality, the efficacy and tolerability of drugs commonly prescribed for the management of sciatica in primary care is unclear.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.