Introduction Pre-existing comorbid conditions in COVID-19 patients are risk factors for developing severe disease and death. We aimed to determine the association of chronic liver disease (CLD), a comorbid condition, with severity of disease and death among COVID-19 patients. Methods We searched for studies reporting COVID-19 outcomes among CLD and non-CLD patients in databases including Medline, EMBASE, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library from inception of the pandemic until February 2022. Risk of bias assessment was conducted by using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for assessing the quality of nonrandomized studies in meta-analyses. We conducted a meta-analysis with a random-effects model and reported pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% CIs. Results We included 40 studies with 908,032 participants. Most studies were conducted in China and the US. COVID-19 patients with CLD had significantly higher odds of having a severe form of COVID-19 (pooled OR = 2.44; 95% CI, 1.89–3.16) and death (pooled OR = 2.35; 95% CI, 1.85–3.00) when compared with COVID-19 patients without CLD. Conclusion The presence of CLD is significantly related to adverse clinical outcomes among COVID-19 patients in terms of severity and mortality. Clinicians should develop a comprehensive intervention plan to manage these high-risk patients and reduce COVID-19–related deaths.

Background Fine‐needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) has become one of the most useful modalities for diagnosis and staging of lymphoma. However, diagnostic accuracy of this technique has been reported with varying results across several studies around the world. Hence, this meta‐analysis was done to assess the accuracy of FNAC for lymphoma diagnosis. Methods We conducted a systematic search for all studies reporting the diagnostic accuracy of FNAC for lymphoma in the databases of PubMed Central, MEDLINE, EMBASE, MEDLINE, SCOPUS and Cochrane library from inception till January 2021. Meta‐analysis was performed using STATA software “midas” package. Results Forty‐seven studies with 7268 patients were included. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of FNAC for diagnosing lymphoma were 93% (95% CI, 90%‐95%) and 97% (95% CI, 95%‐98%), respectively. Likelihood ratio positive was 33.5 (95% CI, 18.5‐60.7) and likelihood ratio negative was 0.07 (0.05‐0.11) making the technique to occupy the left upper quadrant in LR scattergram indicating that FNAC can be used for confirmation and exclusion. There was significant heterogeneity with significant chi‐square test and I2 statistic >75%. There was significant publication bias as per Deek's test and funnel plot. Conclusion To summarize, our study found that FNAC has a vital role as a diagnostic tool for lymphoma with higher sensitivity and specificity. Further studies assessing the accuracy of FNAC on specific types of lymphoma is required.

Aim: Despite several studies and reviews reporting data accuracy of ultrasonography for confirmation of endotracheal intubation, there has been limited pooled evidence summarizing the diagnostic accuracy of this imaging modality, especially based on recent evidence. Hence, the current study reviews the recent literature and conducts a meta-analysis to compare the accuracy of ultrasonography for the confirmation of endotracheal tube placement.Material and methods: We conducted a systematic search for all studies reporting the diagnostic accuracy of ultrasonography in the databases of Medline, EMBASE,PubMed Central, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar & Cochrane library from inception till December 2021. Meta-analysis was performed using STATA software “midas” package.Results: Thirty-eight studies with 3,268 participants were included. Thepooled sensitivity was 98% (95% CI, 97%-99%) and specificity was 95% (95% CI, 90%-98%), respectively. The AUC was 0.98 (95%CI: 0.96-1.00). The pooled DOR was 1090 (95% CI, 408-2910). Pooled LRP was 19 (95% CI, 9-39) and pooled LRN was 0.02 (0.01-0.03). There was significant heterogeneity found in the outcome with significant chi-square tests and I2 statistics > 75%.Conclusion: Findings from our review demonstrate promise in the applicability of ultrasonography as a major diagnostic tool for confirming the endotracheal tube intubation.

AimNursing interventions include the preventive care that can support and guide the nurse's effort to provide asthma interventions for children. Hence, this review was done to assess the effectiveness of nursing interventions for management of childhood asthma.MethodsWe conducted a search in Medline, the Cochrane library, EMBASE, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar from 1964 until April 2022. Meta‐analysis was done using a random‐effects model and pooled weighted mean difference (WMD) or standardized mean difference (SMD) and/or risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsFourteen studies were analysed. The pooled RR was 0.49 for emergency visits (95% CI: 0.32 to 0.77) and 0.46 for hospitalizations (95% CI: 0.27 to 0.79). The pooled WMD was −1.20 for number of days with symptoms (95% CI: −3.50 to 1.11), −0.98 for number of nights with symptoms (95% CI: −2.94 to 0.98) and −0.69 for frequency of asthma attacks (95% CI: −1.19 to −0.20). The pooled SMD was 0.39 for quality of life (95% CI: 0.11 to 0.66) and 0.58 for asthma control (95% CI: −0.29 to 1.46).ConclusionNursing interventions were relatively effective in improving the quality of life and reducing asthma related emergencies, acute attacks and hospitalization amongst childhood asthma patients.

Pulmonary hypertension (PHT) is a major life-threatening complication associated with sickle cell anemia (SCA). However, there is scarcity of evidence in pooling the knowledge regarding the prevalence of PHT in the pediatric SCA patients. Hence, this systematic review was done to determine the pooled prevalence of PHT among SCA children and adolescents. Until January 2021, systematic searches were conducted in MEDLINE, SCOPUS, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Cochrane library, and Google Scholar. The listed studies’ caliber was evaluated using the Newcastle Ottawa scale. The results of a meta-analysis using a random-effects model included a pooled prevalence and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). In total, 31 studies with 3686 participants were included in the study. Majority of the included studies (26 out of 31 studies) had low risk of bias. The final pooled prevalence of PHT among children and adolescents with SCA was 22% (95% CI: 18 – 26%). Maximum burden of PHT among SCA children was reported in Europe (26%) and Eastern Mediterranean region, while the least burden was found in Africa (17%). There was a significant heterogeneity found between the studies in our analysis (I2 = 87.8%; P < 0.001). The presence of publication bias indicated by an asymmetrical funnel plot was also found. About one in five children and adolescents with SCA suffer from PHTN. The burden is maximum in Europe followed by Eastern Mediterranean region. Diagnostic and intervention packages targeting these patients should be developed and implemented across the high-risk settings.