***TASK*** the task is to summarize an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***INPUT*** the input is a biomedical literature 
    ***OUTPUT*** the output is the summary of an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***DOCUMENTATION*** 
    ***EXAMPLES*** 
    Input: To comprehend the results of a r and omised controlled trial ( RCT ) , readers must underst and its design , conduct , analysis , and interpretation . That goal can be achieved only through total transparency from authors . Despite several decades of educational efforts , the reporting of RCTs needs improvement . Investigators and editors developed the original CONSORT ( Consoli date d St and ards of Reporting Trials ) statement to help authors improve reporting by use of a checklist and flow diagram . The revised CONSORT statement presented here incorporates new evidence and addresses some criticisms of the original statement . The checklist items pertain to the content of the Title , Abstract , Introduction , Methods , Results , and Discussion . The revised checklist includes 22 items selected because empirical evidence indicates that not reporting this information is associated with biased estimates of treatment effect , or because the information is essential to judge the reliability or relevance of the findings . We intended the flow diagram to depict the passage of participants through an RCT . The revised flow diagram depicts information from four stages of a trial ( enrolment , intervention allocation , follow- up , and analysis ) . The diagram explicitly shows the number of participants , for each intervention group , included in the primary data analysis . Inclusion of these numbers allows the reader to judge whether the authors have done an intention- to-treat analysis . In sum , the CONSORT statement is intended to improve the reporting of an RCT , enabling readers to underst and a trial 's conduct and to assess the validity of its results CONTEXT The Consoli date d St and ards for Reporting of Trials ( CONSORT ) statement was developed to help improve the quality of reports of r and omized controlled trials ( RCTs ) . To date , a paucity of data exists regarding whether it has achieved this goal . OBJECTIVE To determine whether use of the CONSORT statement is associated with improvement in the quality of reports of RCTs . DESIGN AND SETTING Comparative before- and -after evaluation in which reports of RCTs published in 1994 ( pre-CONSORT ) were compared with RCT reports from the same journals published in 1998 ( post-CONSORT ) . We included 211 reports from BMJ , JAMA , and The Lancet ( journals that adopted CONSORT ) as well as The New Engl and Journal of Medicine ( a journal that did not adopt CONSORT and was used as a comparator ) . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Number of CONSORT items included in a report , frequency of unclear reporting of allocation concealment , and overall trial quality score based on the Jadad scale , a 5-point quality assessment instrument . RESULTS Compared with 1994 , the number of CONSORT checklist items in reports of RCTs increased in all 4 journals in 1998 , and this increase was statistically significant for the 3 adopter journals ( pre-CONSORT , 23.4 ; mean change , 3.7 ; 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] , 2.1 - 5.3 ) . The frequency of unclear reporting of allocation concealment decreased for each of the 4 journals , and this change was statistically significant for adopters ( pre-CONSORT , 61 % ; mean change , -22 % ; 95 % CI , -38 % to -6 % ) . Similarly , 3 of the 4 journals showed an improvement in the quality score for reports of RCTs , and this increase was statistically significant for adopter journals overall ( pre-CONSORT , 2.7 ; mean change , 0.4 ; 95 % CI , 0.1 - 0.8 ) . CONCLUSION Use of the CONSORT statement is associated with improvements in the quality of reports of RCTs CONTEXT A prior national survey documented the high prevalence and costs of  alternative medicine use in the United States in 1990 . OBJECTIVE To document trends in alternative medicine use in the United States between 1990 and 1997 . DESIGN Nationally representative r and om household telephone surveys using comparable key questions were conducted in 1991 and 1997 measuring utilization in 1990 and 1997 , respectively . PARTICIPANTS A total of 1539 adults in 1991 and 2055 in 1997 . MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES Prevalence , estimated costs , and disclosure of alternative therapies to physicians . RESULTS Use of at least 1 of 16 alternative therapies during the previous year increased from 33.8 % in 1990 to 42.1 % in 1997 ( P < or = .001 ) . The therapies increasing the most included herbal medicine , massage , megavitamins , self-help groups , folk remedies , energy healing , and homeopathy . The probability of users visiting an alternative medicine practitioner increased from 36.3 % to 46.3 % ( P = .002 ) . In both surveys alternative therapies were used most frequently for chronic conditions , including back problems , anxiety , depression , and headaches . There was no significant change in disclosure rates between the 2 survey years ; 39.8 % of alternative therapies were disclosed to physicians in 1990 vs 38.5 % in 1997 . The percentage of users paying entirely out-of-pocket for services provided by alternative medicine practitioners did not change significantly between 1990 ( 64.0 % ) and 1997 ( 58.3 % ) ( P=.36 ) . Extrapolations to the US population suggest a 47.3 % increase in total visits to alternative medicine practitioners , from 427 million in 1990 to 629 million in 1997 , thereby exceeding total visits to all US primary care physicians . An estimated 15 million adults in 1997 took prescription medications concurrently with herbal remedies and /or high-dose vitamins ( 18.4 % of all prescription users ) . Estimated expenditures for alternative medicine professional services increased 45.2 % between 1990 and 1997 and were conservatively estimated at $ 21.2 billion in 1997 , with at least $ 12.2 billion paid out-of-pocket . This exceeds the 1997 out-of-pocket expenditures for all US hospitalizations . Total 1997 out-of-pocket expenditures relating to alternative therapies were conservatively estimated at $ 27.0 billion , which is comparable with the projected 1997 out-of-pocket expenditures for all US physician services . CONCLUSIONS  Alternative medicine use and expenditures increased substantially between 1990 and 1997 , attributable primarily to an increase in the proportion of the population seeking alternative therapies , rather than increased visits per patient STUDY OBJECTIVE To study the efficacy of intestinal decontamination by oral nonabsorbable antibiotic agents to control a nosocomial outbreak of intestinal colonization and infection with multiresistant Enterobacteriaceae , and to examine its effects on endemic nosocomial infection rates . DESIGN A 10-week prospect i ve incidence study ( group 1 ) , and then an 8-week r and omized , open trial of intestinal decontamination ( groups 2 and 3 ) . SETTING A medical intensive care unit of a tertiary care university hospital . PATIENTS Consecutive patients with unit stay of over 2 days and a severity score at admission of more than 2 ; 124 patients were included in group 1 , 50 in group 2 ( control ) , and 36 in group 3 ( intestinal decontamination ) . INTERVENTIONS Neomycin , polymyxin E , and nalidixic acid were given to group 3 patients throughout their stay in the unit . MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Intestinal colonization with multiresistant strains occurred in 19.6 % of patients in group 1 , at a mean of 16 days after admission , and preceded detection in clinical sample s by a mean of 11 days . During the decontamination trial , intestinal colonization rates decreased to 10 % ( group 2 ) , and 3 % ( group 3 ) ( P = 0.12 and P less than 0.01 , compared with group 1 , respectively ) . Corresponding infection rates were 9 % ( group 1 ) , 3 % ( group 2 ) , and 0 ( group 3 ) . No new cases were detected in the following 4 months . The intestinal colonization rate with gram-positive cocci was higher in group 3 than group 2 ( P less than 0.001 ) . The overall rate of nosocomial infections was at 28 % ( group 1 ) , 33 % ( group 2 ) , and 32 % ( group 3 ) . CONCLUSIONS Intestinal decontamination can help to control an outbreak of intestinal colonization and infection with multiresistant gram-negative bacilli in the intensive care unit , but should not be recommended for routine prevention of endemic nosocomial infections Objective To evaluate the quality of reports of complementary and alternative medicine ( CAM ) r and omized controlled trials ( RCTs ) in the pediatric population . We also examined whether there was a change in the quality of reporting over time . Methods We used a systematic sample of 251 reports of RCTs that used a CAM intervention .  The quality of each report was assessed using the number of CONSORT checklist items included , the frequency of unclear allocation concealment , and a 5-point quality assessment instrument . Results Nearly half ( 40 % ) of the CONSORT checklist items were included in the reports , with an increase in the number of items included . The majority ( 81.3 % ) of RCTs reported unclear allocation concealment with no significant change over time . The quality of reports achieved approximately 40 % of their maximum possible total score as assessed with the Jadad scale with no change over time . Information regarding adverse events was reported in less than one quarter of the RCTs ( 22 % ) and information regarding costs was mentioned in only a minority of reports ( 4 % ) . Conclusions RCTs are an important tool for evidence based health care decisions . If these studies are to be relevant in the evaluation of CAM interventions it is important that they are conducted and reported with the highest possible st and ards . There is a need to redouble efforts to ensure that children and their families are participating in RCTs that are conducted and reported with minimal bias . Such studies will increase their usefulness to a board spectrum of interested stakeholders BACKGROUND To investigate the method ological quality of r and omized controlled trials in three areas of complementary medicine . METHODS The method ological quality of 207 r and omized trials collected for five previously published systematic review s on homeopathy , herbal medicine  ( Hypericum for depression , Echinacea for common cold ) , and acupuncture ( for asthma and chronic headache ) was assessed using a vali date d scale ( the Jadad scale ) and single quality items . RESULTS While the method ological quality of the trials was highly variable , the majority had important shortcomings in reporting and /or methodology . Major problems in most trials were the description of allocation concealment and the reporting of drop-outs and withdrawals . There were relevant differences in single quality components between the different complementary therapies : For example , acupuncture trials reported adequate allocation concealment less often ( 6 % versus 32 % of homeopathy and 26 % of herb trials ) , and trials on herbal extracts had better summary scores ( mean score 3.12 versus 2.33 for homeopathy and 2.19 for acupuncture trials ) . Larger trials published more recently in journals listed in Medline and in English language scored significantly higher than trials not meeting these criteria . CONCLUSION Trials of complementary therapies often have relevant method ological weaknesses . The type of weaknesses varies considerably across interventions OBJECTIVE To determine whether clinical trials originating in certain countries always have positive results . DATA SOURCES Abstract s of trials from Medline ( January 1966-June 1995 ) . STUDY SELECTION Two separate studies were conducted . The first included trials in which the clinical outcome of a group of subjects receiving acupuncture  was compared to that of a group receiving placebo , no treatment , or a nonacupuncture intervention . In the second study , r and omized or controlled trials of interventions other than  acupuncture  that were published in China , Japan , Russia/USSR , or Taiwan were compared to those published in Engl and . DATA EXTRACTION Blinded review ers determined inclusion and outcome and separately classified each trial by country of origin . DATA SYNTHESIS In the study of acupuncture  trials , 252 of 1085 abstract s met the inclusion criteria . Research conducted in certain countries was uniformly favorable to acupuncture ; all trials originating in China , Japan , Hong Kong , and Taiwan were positive , as were 10 out of 11 of those published in Russia/USSR . In studies that examined interventions other than acupuncture , 405 of 1100 abstract s met the inclusion criteria . Of trials published in Engl and , 75 % gave the test treatment as superior to control . The results for China , Japan , Russia/USSR , and Taiwan were 99 % , 89 % , 97 % , and 95 % , respectively . No trial published in China or Russia/USSR found a test treatment to be ineffective . CONCLUSIONS Some countries publish unusually high proportions of positive results . Publication bias is a possible explanation . Research ers undertaking systematic review s should consider carefully how to manage data from these countries A systematic quantitative and qualitative overview of published r and omized clinical trials was undertaken to assess the yield of medical treatment on the outcome of patients with primary open angle glaucoma . Reports of 102 r and omized clinical trials were published between 1975 and 1991 , totalling about 5000 patients . Only 16 % ( 16/102 ) of the trials were , however , properly design ed ( ie , comparing an active treatment with a placebo-tre 
    Output:
    
Language inclusive/LOE systematic review s were of the highest quality compared with the other types of review s. The CAM review s were of higher quality compared with the CM review s. There were only minor differences in the quality of reports of EL RCTs compared with the eight other language s considered .
However , there are inconsistent differences in the quality of LOE reports depending on the intervention type .
The results , and those reported previously , suggest that excluding reports of RCTs in LOE from the analytical part of a systematic review is reasonable .
This result only applies to review s investigating the benefits of CM interventions .
Language restrictions significantly shift the estimates of an intervention 's effectiveness when the intervention is CAM .
Here , excluding trials reported in LOE , compared with their inclusion , result ed in a reduced intervention effect .
The present results do not appear to be influenced by statistical heterogeneity and publication bias .
Language inclusive/LOE systematic review s appear to be a marker for a better quality systematic review .
Language restrictions do not appear to bias the estimates of a conventional intervention 's effectiveness .
However , there is substantial bias in the results of a CAM systematic review if LOE reports are excluded from it