Are alpha-blockers effective as medical expulsive therapy for ureteral stones?
BEEM Bottom Line
Why is this study important?
Acute renal colic is a common emergency department (ED) complaint with increasing trends in ED referrals.[1] Because of conflicting study results, controversy persists over the effectiveness of alpha-blockers as medical expulsive therapy for ureteral stones. This is an update of a 2014 Cochrane review that includes an additional 35 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) since prior publication using the GRADE approach to rate the quality of evidence.
Which, if any, threats to validity are most likely to have an impact on the results and how?
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