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. 2017 May 23;2017(5):CD008860. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD008860.pub3

Zhang 2005.

Methods RCT
Participants Location: China
94 participants (47 each in control and intervention groups) with clinical diagnosis of stroke according to CCMD‐3 criteria and affective disorders (72 included in final analysis)
Intervention group: 64% male, 57.8 years (SD 6.4)
Control group: 61% male, 59.2 years (SD 5.8)
Interventions Intervention group: 36 participants, buspirone hydrochloride 20 to 30 mg daily in first week, 40 to 60 mg in second week + routine care
Control group: 36 participants, routine care (no description of routine care)
Duration: 4 weeks
Study dates: May 2001 to June 2002
Outcomes Anxiety (HAM‐A) and depression (HAM‐D) at 2 and 4 weeks
Loss to follow‐up: 22 (11 in each group)

  1. Intervention group: 7 withdrew before treatment, 1 unsatisfactory treatment effects, 2 adverse effects, 1 prescribed benzodiazepines

  2. Control group: 6 withdrew before treatment, 1 recurrent stroke, 4 prescribed benzodiazepines


Adverse effects: 5

  1. Intervention group: 3 dizziness and nausea, 2 palpitations


Other outcomes: American Heart Stroke Outcome Classification
Notes Exclusion: patients with unstable conditions
Funding sources/declarations of interest: no details
Risk of bias
Bias Authors' judgement Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias) Unclear risk No information provided
Allocation concealment (selection bias) Unclear risk No information provided
Blinding (performance bias and detection bias) 
 Anxiety Unclear risk No information provided
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) 
 All outcomes Unclear risk High number of losses but balanced between groups
Selective reporting (reporting bias) Unclear risk No information provided
Other bias Unclear risk No information provided

BI: Barthel Index
 CCMD‐3: Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders Version 3
 CT: computed tomography
 HADS‐A: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale ‐ anxiety subscale
 HAM‐A: Hamilton Anxiety Scale
 HAM‐D: Hamilton Depression Rating Scale
 MRI: magnetic resonance imaging
 RCT: randomised controlled trial
 SD: standard deviation
 SSS: Scandinavian Stroke Scale
 TICS: Telephone Interview of Cognitive Status