Background: Sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors have been recommended in the practice guidelines for the treatment of patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction; however, their effects among patients with preserved ejection fraction have been debatable. Objective: We aim to evaluate the SGLT2 inhibitor effect among patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, including DELIVER and EMPEROR-Preserved trials. Methods: We performed a systematic literature search using the PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Cochrane libraries for relevant articles from inception until August 30th, 2022. Statistical analysis was performed by calculating hazard ratio (HR) using the random effect model with a 95% confidence interval (CI) and probability value (P). Statistical significance was met if 95% CI does not cross numeric “1” and P < .05. Results: Six studies with a total of 15,989 total patients were included in the final analysis. The mean age of patients enrolled in SGLT2 inhibitors and placebo was 69.13 and 69.37 years, respectively. The median follow-up duration was 2.24 years. SGLT2 inhibitors reduced composite cardiovascular mortality or first hospitalization for heart failure (HR, 0.80 [95% CI: 0.74–0.87], P < .001, I ² = 0%), heart failure hospitalization (HR, 0.74 [95% CI: 0.67–0.82], P < .001, I ² = 0%) compared with placebo. However, all-cause mortality (HR, 0.97 [95% CI: 0.89–1.06], P = .54, I ² = 0%) and cardiovascular mortality (HR, 0.96 [95% CI: 0.82–1.13), P = .66, I ² = 35.09%] were comparable between both groups. Conclusion: Our study finding shows that SGLT2 inhibitors significantly reduced the risk of first HF hospitalization or cardiovascular death and HF hospitalization; however, all-cause mortality was comparable between the groups.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disorder with a varying range of organs involved leading to adverse outcomes. However, very little is known, with conflicting results about the association between RA and atrial fibrillation (AF). We aim to evaluate the association between RA and AF, and other clinical outcomes. We performed a systematic literature search using PubMed, Embase, and Scopus for relevant articles from inception until September 10, 2023. Primary clinical outcomes were AF. Secondary outcomes were acute coronary syndrome (ACS), stroke, and all‐cause mortality (ACM). A total of 4 679 930 patients were included in the analysis, with 81 677 patients in the RA group and 4 493 993 patients in the nonrheumatoid arthritis (NRA) group. The mean age of the patients was 57.2 years. Pooled analysis of primary outcomes shows that RA groups of patients had a significantly higher risk of AF (odds ratios [OR], 1.53; 95% confidence interval [CI]: [1.16–2.03], p < .001) compared with NRA groups. Secondary Outcomes show that the RA group of patients had significantly higher odds of ACS (OR, 1.39; 95% CI: [1.26–1.52], p < .001), and ACM (OR, 1.19; 95% CI: [1.03–1.37], p = .02) compared with the NRA groups. However, the likelihood of stroke (OR, 1.02; 95% CI: [0.94–1.11], p = .61) was comparable between both groups of patients. Our study shows that RA groups of patients are at increased risk of having AF, ACS, and ACM.

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More than 50% of the world's youth and many economies with the greatest growth rates are in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Many prevailing diseases in these areas comprise neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) – the 13 bacterial and parasitic infections that predominantly affect the poorest one-sixth of the world's population. The lack of published data, heightened by the disregard of researchers of developed countries, amounts to the ‘missing piece’ when attempting to draw a global picture of such diseases using systematic reviews or meta-analyses because of the imbalance in distribution. Defining and measuring the problem, evaluating the effectiveness and cost of interventions, and assessing cost-effectiveness are all necessary steps in determining health priorities for eradicating these NTDs.