Introduction: The risks of pregnancy in women of advanced maternal age are not consensual amongst studies. The aim of this metaanalysis was to determine whether women of advanced maternal age (≥ 35 years old) had worse obstetrical and perinatal outcomes than non- advanced maternal age women (20 - 34 years old) in singleton, naturally-conceived pregnancies.Material and Methods: We searched PubMed/ MEDLINE, IndexRMP and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. Ten studies were included according to the following criteria: population of > 1000 nulliparous and/or multiparous women with singleton gestations who did not undergo any type of infertility treatment. Using Review Manager v. 5.3, two meta-analysis were performed: one comparing the outcomes of 20 - 34-year-old vs 35 - 40-year-old women, and another comparing the outcomes of 35 - 40-year-old women vs > 40-year-old women.Results: Women aged 35 - 40 years old were more likely to have > 12 years of education than 20 - 34 years old and > 40 years old women. Advanced maternal age women (35 - 40 and > 40 years old) were more likely to be overweight and having gestational diabetes and gestational hypertension. They were also more likely to undergo induced labour and elective caesarean deliveries. Furthermore, they had worse perinatal outcomes such as preterm delivery, low birthweight babies, higher rates of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit admission and worse Apgar scores. Advanced maternal age women had higher rates of perinatal mortality and stillbirth.Discussion: Most authors present similar results to our study. Although the majority of adverse outcomes can be explained through the physio-pathological changes regarding the female reproductive apparatus that come with aging and its inherent comorbidities, according to the existing literature advanced maternal age can be an independent risk factor per se. In older pregnant women without comorbidities such as gestational hypertension or diabetes there are still worse obstetric and perinatal outcomes, which indicate that advanced maternal age is an independent strong risk factor alone.Conclusion: Advanced maternal age women are at a higher risk of adverse obstetrical and perinatal outcomes. In both comparisons, worse outcomes were more prevalent in the older group, suggesting that poorer outcomes are more prevalent with increasing age.

Tem-se verificado crescente aumento do uso da revisão sistemática como metodologia de investigação para compilar e analisar grandes conjuntos de dados de estudos existentes. Com este aumento também aumentaram as recomendações para conduzir este tipo de investigação. O objectivo deste artigo é fornecer um guia para compreender e/ou realizar uma revisão sistemática para publicação, indicando todas as etapas do processo de revisão. Ao fazerem uma revisão sistemática da literatura, os autores tornam-se conhecedores do tema e, embora consuma muito tempo, podem desenvolver um conjunto de competências incluindo a de pesquisa da literatura e de redacção científica. A revisão sistemática, comparada com a investigação primária, requer relativamente poucos recursos, permitindo que os clínicos normalmente não envolvidos em investigação produzam artigos clinicamente relevantes e de alta qualidade.

Despite an increasingly recognized relationship between depression and smoking, little is known about how smoking influences antidepressant response and treatment outcomes. The aim of this study was to systematically review the evidence of the impact of smoking on new-generation antidepressants with an emphasis on the pharmacokinetic perspective. We present a systematic review of clinical trials comparing the serum levels of new-generation antidepressants in smokers and nonsmokers. Data were obtained from MEDLINE/PubMed, Embase, and other sources. Risk of bias was assessed for selection, performance, detection, attrition, and reporting of individual studies. Twenty-one studies met inclusion criteria; seven involved fluvoxamine, two evaluated fluoxetine, sertraline, venlafaxine, duloxetine or mirtazapine, and escitalopram, citalopram, trazodone and bupropion were the subject of a single study. No trials were found involving other common antidepressants such as paroxetine or agomelatine. Serum levels of fluvoxamine, duloxetine, mirtazapine and trazodone were significantly higher in nonsmokers compared with smokers. There is evidence showing a reduction in the concentration of serum levels of fluvoxamine, duloxetine, mirtazapine and trazodone in smoking patients as compared to nonsmokers. The evidence regarding other commonly used antidepressants is scarce. Nonetheless, smoking status should be considered when choosing an antidepressant treatment, given the risk of pharmacokinetic interactions.

Background: Blood–brain barrier permeability (BBBp) is a key process involved in ischemic stroke pathophysiology. However, there is a lack of consensus on how BBBp evolves after the ischemia injury, and its clinical relevance at different timepoints post stroke. Aims: The main objective of this study is to assess BBBp evolution through stroke phases and its implications on patient outcomes. Methods: We screened PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials up to 31 December 2021. We included research quantitatively using neuroimaging to assess BBBp in stroke patients. BBBp in the different phases was evaluated by a random-effect model based on the standardized mean difference (SMD) between the ipsilateral and contralateral sides of the brain. We performed a subgroup analysis on clinical outcome, reperfusion treatment, haemorrhagic transformation, and imaging method. Results: We identified 3761 studies, of which 22 (1592 patients and 1787 evaluations) were included in our study. Overall, 17 studies reported BBBp for the hyperacute phase, 8 for the acute, 5 for the subacute, and 2 for the chronic phase. All phases were associated with increased BBBp: 0.74 (0.48–0.99), 1.68 (0.94–2.42), 1.98 (0.96–3.00), and 1.00 (0.45–1.55), respectively. An increase in BBBp was associated with hemorrhagic transformation in the hyperacute phase and with improved functional outcomes in the late subacute phase. Conclusion: BBBp is persistently increased after stroke, peaking in the acute and subacute phases. The degree of BBBp influences patient outcomes depending on stroke phase. Our findings support the clinical relevance of BBBp dynamics in stroke care.

In?s Filipa Alves de Carvalho, DMD/Tiago Miguel Santos Marques, DMD/Filipe Miguel Ara?jo, DMD/Lu?s Filipe Azevedo, MD, PhD/Helena Donato, MLS/Andr? Correia, DMD, PhD: Owing to an increased demand for safe and esthetically pleasing dental materials, ceramics have been developed and optimized to rehabilitate anterior and posterior teeth. This evolution in ceramic materials is directly related to the development of sophisticated processing technologies and systems for use in dental medicine, particularly computer-aided design/computer-assisted manufacture (CAD/CAM) technology. This study is a systematic review outlining long-term clinical survival rates of single-tooth restorations fabricated with CAD/CAM technology with a minimum follow-up of 3 years. A bibliographic search up to September 2016 was performed using two databases: MEDLINE (PubMed) and Embase. Selected keywords and well-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria guided the search of relevant results. All articles were first reviewed by title, then by abstract, and subsequently by a full text reading. Data were assessed and extracted through a standardized form. The pooled results were statistically analyzed, and the overall failure rate was calculated by random effects model. Reported failures were analyzed by CAD/CAM system, type of restoration, restorative material, and luting agent. From a total of 2,916 single-tooth restorations with a mean exposure time of 7.0 years and 351 failures, the failure rate was 2.17% per year, estimated per 100 restoration years (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.35% to 3.51%). The estimated total survival rate after 5 years was 89.7% (95% CI: 88.1% to 91.1%). The overall survival rate of single-tooth ceramic restorations fabricated with CAD/CAM technology was similar to those conventionally manufactured.