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Background: Despite the fact that thyroid surgery has evolved towards minimal incisions and endoscopic approaches, the role of total endoscopic thyroidectomy (TET) in thyroid cancer has been highly disputed. We performed a systematic review and meta-analyses of peer reviewed studies in order to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of TET compared with conventional open thyroidectomy (COT) in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC).Method: Medical literature databases such as PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and Web of science were systematically searched for articles that compared TET and COT in PTC treatment from database inception until March 2019. The quality of the studies included in the review was evaluated using the Downs and Black scale using Review Manager software Stata V.13.0 for the meta-analysis.Results: The systematic review and meta-analysis were based on 5664 cases selected from twenty publications. Criteria used to determine surgical completeness included postoperative thyroglobulin (TG) levels, recurrence of the tumor after long-term follow-up. Adverse event and complication rate scores included transient recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) palsy, permanent RLN palsy, transient hypocalcaemia, permanent hypocalcaemia, operative time, number of removed lymph nodes, length of hospital stay and patient cosmetic satisfaction. TET was found to be generally equivalent to COT in terms of surgical completeness and adverse event rate, although TET resulted in lower levels of transient hypocalcemia (OR 1.66; p < 0.05), a smaller number of the retrieved lymph nodes (WMD 0.46; p < 0.05), and better cosmetic satisfaction (WMD 1.73; p < 0.05). COT was associated with a shorter operation time (WMD - 50.28; p < 0.05) and lower rates of transient RLN palsy (OR 0.41; p < 0.05).Conclusions: The results show that in terms of safety and efficacy, TET was similar to COT for the treatment of thyroid cancer. Indeed, the tumor recurrence rates and the level of surgical completeness in TET are similar to those obtained for COT. TET was associated with significantly lower levels of transient hypocalcemia and better cosmetic satisfaction, and thus is the better option for patients with cosmetic concerns. Overall, randomized clinical trials and studies with larger patient cohorts and long-term follow-up data are required to further demonstrate the value of the TET. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The amelioration of myocardial reperfusion in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) remains a significant issue. Objective: We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to better assess the effects of intracoronary nicorandil administration on myocardial microcirculation and clinical outcomes in these patients. Methods: The meta-analysis was performed according to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) statement. A literature search was performed in the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases up to April 2019, with no time or language limitations. Pooled risk ratios (RRs) were calculated to evaluate the treatment effects. Results: Seven RCTs involving a total of 562 patients were included. Compared with control, intracoronary nicorandil significantly reduced the incidence of thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) grade ≤ 2 (RR 0.349; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.199–0.611; P < 0.001) and TIMI myocardial perfusion grade ≤ 2 (RR 0.611; 95% CI 0.438–0.852; P = 0.004) and was associated with higher complete ST-segment resolution rates (RR 1.326; 95% CI 1.090–1.614; P = 0.005). However, no significant benefits were observed on clinical outcomes, including death (RR 0.370; 95% CI 0.085–1.618; P = 0.187), recurrent myocardial infarction (RR 0.507; 95% CI 0.156–1.655; P = 0.261), heart failure (RR 0.528; 95% CI 0.224–1.247; P = 0.145), and target lesion/vessel revascularization (RR 1.109; 95% CI 0.553–2.224; P = 0.770). Conclusions: Intracoronary nicorandil can significantly improve myocardial microcirculation in patients with AMI undergoing PPCI, but it failed to offer clinically significant benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]