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Artemisinin-based combination therapy for ... - The Cochrane Library

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(Continued)<br />

GRADE Working Group grades of evidence<br />

High quality: Further research is very unlikely to change our confidence in the estimate of effect.<br />

Moderate quality: Further research is likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and may change<br />

the estimate.<br />

Low quality: Further research is very likely to have an important impact on our confidence in the estimate of effect and is likely to<br />

change the estimate.<br />

Very low quality: We are very uncertain about the estimate.<br />

Footnotes<br />

1 Please note that due to its longer half-life treatment failure due to DHA-P may be underestimated at this time point. One trial (Zongo<br />

2007 BFA) also reported treatment failure at day 42 and did not show a difference.<br />

2 Karema 2004 RWA and Zongo 2007 BFA.<br />

3 No serious limitations: Allocation concealment was judged to be at ’low risk of bias’ in one trial and ’unclear’ in the other. Laboratory<br />

staff were blinded to treatment allocation in one trial.<br />

4 No serious inconsistency: Heterogeneity was low.<br />

5 Serious indirectness: Due to variable resistance rates to AQ and SP, extrapolation of results to other areas is likely to be unreliable.<br />

6 Trials conducted in Rwanda (transmission not stated) and Burkina Faso (holoendemic). Children aged < 6 months and pregnant or<br />

lactating women were excluded.<br />

7 No serious imprecision: Both limits of the 95% CI of the pooled estimate imply appreciable benefit with DHA-P over AQ+SP.<br />

8 No serious limitations: Allocation concealment was judged to be ’low risk of bias’ in this trial (Zongo 2007 BFA). This trial was<br />

unblinded.<br />

9 Very serious imprecision: <strong>The</strong> 95% CI of the pooled estimate is wide including appreciable benefit or harm with each drug over the<br />

other.<br />

10 Serious indirectness. Only one trial (Zongo 2007 BFA) reported this outcome.<br />

11 Very serious imprecision: No serious adverse events were recorded. It is unlikely that a trial of this size would detect rare but important<br />

adverse events.<br />

12 One trial (Zongo 2007 BFA) reports vomiting medication on day 0 (as an exclusion criteria not an outcome) and found no difference.<br />

Is Artesunate plus mefloquine superior to Artemether-lumefantrine <strong>for</strong> treating uncomplicated malaria?<br />

Patient or population: Patients with uncomplicated malaria<br />

Settings: Endemic areas worldwide<br />

Intervention: Artesunate plus mefloquine<br />

Comparison: Artemether-lumefantrine<br />

Outcomes Illustrative comparative risks* (95% CI) Relative effect<br />

(95% CI)<br />

<strong>Artemisinin</strong>-<strong>based</strong> <strong>combination</strong> <strong>therapy</strong> <strong>for</strong> treating uncomplicated malaria (Review)<br />

Copyright © 2009 <strong>The</strong> <strong>Cochrane</strong> Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.<br />

No of participants<br />

(studies)<br />

Quality of the evidence<br />

(GRADE)<br />

249

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