Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37658311›Full record

SynthesisBMC pulmonary medicine2023

A systematic review of the clinical impact of small colony variants in patients with cystic fibrosis.

Harrigan Ryan, Emma Ballard, Rebecca E Stockwell, Christine Duplancic, Rachel M Thomson, Kimberley Smith, Scott C Bell

Open access · goldAbstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC pulmonary medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
2.1field-weighted citation impact, top 12% 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

7 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. A c-di-AMP-controlled glutamine synthesis pathway promotes persistence ofbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Prevalence and risk factors for recurrent Staphylococcus aureus small-colony variants in people with cystic fibrosis followed at the Tuscan Regional Reference Center.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2026
    Article
  4. Microbial and host innate immune factors affecting the persistence ofFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2026
    Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. 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

7 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Harrigan RyanCentre for Children's Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Emma BallardStatistics Unit, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Herston, QLD, Australia.
Rebecca E StockwellCentre for Children's Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Christine DuplancicCentre for Children's Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Rachel M ThomsonRespiratory Research Group, Gallipoli Medical Research Foundation, Greenslopes, QLD, Australia.
Kimberley SmithCentre for Children's Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Scott C BellCentre for Children's Health Research, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia. bells@uq.edu.au.
The University of Queensland · AUChildren's Medical Research Institute · AUGallipoli Medical Research Foundation · AUQIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-limiting disorder that is characterised by respiratory tract inflammation that is mediated by a range of microbial pathogens. Small colony variants (SCVs) of common respiratory pathogens are being increasingly recognised in CF. The aim of this systematic review is to investigate the prevalence of SCVs, clinical characteristics and health outcomes for patients with CF, and laboratory diagnostic features of SCVs compared to non-small colony variants (NCVs) for a range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative respiratory pathogens.

methodsA literature search was conducted (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase and Scopus) in April 2020 to identify articles of interest. Data pertaining to demographic characteristics of participants, diagnostic criteria of SCVs, SCV prevalence and impact on lung function were extracted from included studies for analysis.

resultsTwenty-five of 673 studies were included in the systematic review. Individuals infected with SCVs of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) were more likely to have had prior use of the broad-spectrum antibiotic trimethoprim sulfamethoxazole (p < 0.001), and the prevalence of SCVs in patients infected with S. aureus was estimated to be 19.3% (95% CI: 13.5% to 25.9%). Additionally, patients infected with SCVs of Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogens were identified to have a lower forced expiratory volume in one second percentage predicted (-16.8, 95% CI: -23.2 to -10.4) than those infected by NCVs. Gram-positive SCVs were commonly described as small and non-haemolytic, grown on Mannitol salt or blood agar for 24 h at 35°C and confirmed using tube coagulase testing.

conclusionThe findings of this systematic review demonstrate that SCVs of S. aureus have a high prevalence in the CF community, and that the occurrence of SCVs in Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens is linked to poorer respiratory function. Further investigation is necessary to determine the effect of infection by SCVs on the CF population.

Indexed as

Cystic FibrosisAnti-Bacterial AgentsCulture MediaHumansPatientsStaphylococcus aureusAnti-Bacterial AgentsCulture MediaClinical impactCystic fibrosisPrevalenceSmall colony variants

Identifiers

PMID37658311
PMCPMC10474644
OpenAlexW4386385071

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.