Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30201828›Full record

SynthesisThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2018

Treatments for subacute cough in primary care: systematic review and meta-analyses of randomised clinical trials.

Benjamin Speich, Anja Thomer, Soheila Aghlmandi, Hannah Ewald, Andreas Zeller, Lars G Hemkens

Open access · bronzeAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
2.0field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 32 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Trial
  2. Trial
  3. Climate-conscious inhaler prescribing for family physicians.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2024
    Review
  4. CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne · 2024
    Article
  5. Postinfectious cough in adults.CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne · 2024
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Bronchodilators or inhaled corticosteroids for postinfectious cough.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2023
    Article
  8. Article
  9. Review
  10. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Benjamin SpeichBasel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Clinical Research, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Anja ThomerCentre for Primary Health Care, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Soheila AghlmandiBasel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Clinical Research, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Hannah EwaldBasel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Clinical Research, University Hospital Basel, and Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, and University Medical Library, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Andreas ZellerCentre for Primary Health Care, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Lars G HemkensBasel Institute for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Department of Clinical Research, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
University of Basel · CHUniversity Hospital of Basel · CH

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSubacute cough following a non-specific viral infection lasting 3-8 weeks is common. However, despite many treatment options there are no systematic reviews evaluating these.

aimTo provide a systematic overview of treatment options and outcomes evaluated in randomised clinical trials (RCTs). DESIGN AND

settingSystematic review and meta-analyses assessing the overall effects of any treatment for subacute cough.

methodThe authors systematically searched PubMed/MEDLINE and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (last search March 2017) for RCTs in adult patients with subacute cough. The authors considered trials evaluating any outcome of any drug or non-drug treatments, apart from traditional Chinese and Asian medicines. They combined treatment effects on cough-related outcomes in random effects meta-analyses.

resultsSix eligible RCTs including 724 patients were identified. These assessed montelukast, salbutamol plus ipratropium bromide, gelatine, fluticasone propionate, budesonide, and nociception opioid 1 receptor agonist and codeine. Five studies reported effects on various cough severity scores at various timepoints. No treatment option was associated with a clear benefit on cough recovery or other patient-relevant outcomes in any of the studies or in meta-analyses for cough outcomes at 14 days and 28 days. Reported adverse events were rather mild and reported for 14% of patients across all treatments.

conclusionEvidence on treatment options for subacute cough is weak. There is no treatment showing clear patient-relevant benefits in clinical trials.

Indexed as

Primary Health CareAcute DiseaseAdministration, InhalationAdrenal Cortex HormonesAnti-Asthmatic AgentsAntitussive AgentsCoughHumansRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicTreatment OutcomeAdrenal Cortex HormonesAnti-Asthmatic AgentsAntitussive Agentscoughcough scoredisease progressionsubacutetreatment

Identifiers

PMID30201828
PMCPMC6145999
OpenAlexW2891851605

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.