Six trials with a control group were included (n=329: 162 patients received oxime and 167 did not). The authors of the review did not report any details of the design of the included studies.
Pooled analyses showed that oximes significantly increased the risk of death (RR 2.17, 95% CI: 1.34, 3.51, p=0.0017), 'need for ventilation' (RR 1.53, 95% CI: 1.16, 2.02, p=0.03; based on 5 studies) and intermediate syndrome (RR 1.57, 95% CI: 1.11, 2.11, p=0.01; based on 3 studies) compared with control.
No statistically significant heterogeneity was found for any of the meta-analyses (p=0.25, p=0.16 and p=0.33, respectively).
There was no evidence of publication bias for studies reporting death (p=0.45) or the 'need for ventilation'.