Chapter 11: Systematic Reviews and Clinical Practice Guidelines

Question 1

Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation II (AGREE II)

Answer 1

A widely used instrument to evaluate the applicability of a guideline to practice. The AGREE II was developed to assist in evaluating guideline quality, provide a methodological strategy for guideline development, and inform practitioners about what information should be reported in guidelines and how it should be reported

Question 2

CASP tools

Answer 2

Checklists that provide an evidence-based approach for assessing the quality, quantity, and consistency of specific study designs

Question 3

clinical practice guidelines

Answer 3

systemically developed statement or recommendations that link research and practice and serve as a guide for practitioners

Question 4

effect size

Answer 4

an estimate of how large of a difference there is between intervention and control groups in summarized studies

Question 5

evidence-based practice guidelines

Answer 5

practice guidelines developed based on research findings

Question 6

expert-based practice guidelines

Answer 6

depend on having a group of nationally known experts in the field who meet and solely use opinions of experts along with whatever research evidence is developed to date

Question 7

forest plot

Answer 7

also known as a blobbogram, a forest plot graphically depicts the results of analyzing a number of studies

Question 8

integrative reviews

Answer 8

synthesis review of the literature on a specific concept or topic

Question 9

meta-analysis

Answer 9

a research method that takes the results of multiple studies in a specific and synthesizes the findings to make conclusions regarding the area of focus

Question 10

systemic review

Answer 10

Process where investigators find all relevant studies, published and unpublished, on the topic or question, at least two members of the review team independently assess the quality of each study, include or exclude studies based on preestablished criteria, statistically combine the results of individual studies, and present a balanced and impartial evidence summary of the findings that represents a “state of the science” conclusion about the evidence supporting benefits and risks of a given health care practice