Interpreting evidence Flashcards
Check systematic reviews if unsure
Search engines-Why use PubMed or Ovid over Google scholar?
because everything on PubMed has been peerreviewed
Here’s how you can approach the paper:
Background
What’s the Research Question?
What’s the gap in the literature?
Methodology
Identify PICO: Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome
Population and sample - who is the paper relevant for?
Diagram of the study design
Biases that might arise from the methodology
Confounding and effect modification
Causal pathways
Results
What are the main findings?
Discussion
Do authors acknowledge limitations?
How does the research compare to published literature?
Critical analysis tips:
Critiquing is not the same as criticising! You can find positive and negative aspects about a study.
Think back to all that you’ve learned this year in LMAP2 about study design - what do YOU think of this study?
Is there something missing? What else would you like to know about the sample or the methods?
Can you see the shortcomings and merits of this study? Are they acknowledged by the authors?
What avenues for future research do you envision?
Counfounder-affects both independent and dependent variables
So increases the amount of milk you’re drinking and also causes acne.
Tell patient there is evidence by removing it from diet your acne can be improved but interventional studies are needed to be done on people with acne who have milk removed from diet and any improvement is recorded.
