| Analysis of overall level of evidence behind Infectious Diseases Society of America practice guidelines. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 21220656 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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BACKGROUND: Clinical practice guidelines are developed to assist in patient care. Physicians may assume that following such guidelines means practicing evidence-based medicine. However, the quality of supporting literature can vary greatly. METHODS: We analyzed the strength of recommendation and overall quality of evidence behind 41 Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) guidelines released between January 1994 and May 2010. Individual recommendations were classified based on their strength of recommendation (levels A through C) and quality of evidence (levels I through III). Guidelines not following this format were excluded from further analysis. Evolution of IDSA guidelines was assessed by comparing 5 recently updated guidelines with their earlier versions. RESULTS: In the 41 analyzed guidelines, 4218 individual recommendations were found and tabulated. Fourteen percent of the recommendations were classified as level I, 31% as level II, and 55% as level III evidence. Among class A recommendations (good evidence for support), 23% were level I (≥1 randomized controlled trial) and 37% were based on expert opinion only (level III). Updated guidelines expanded the absolute number of individual recommendations substantially. However, few were due to a sizable increase in level I evidence; most additional recommendations had level II and III evidence. CONCLUSIONS: More than half of the current recommendations of the IDSA are based on level III evidence only. Until more data from well-designed controlled clinical trials become available, physicians should remain cautious when using current guidelines as the sole source guiding patient care decisions. |
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Authors:
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Dong Heun Lee; Ole Vielemeyer |
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Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Archives of internal medicine Volume: 171 ISSN: 1538-3679 ISO Abbreviation: Arch. Intern. Med. Publication Date: 2011 Jan |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2011-01-11 Completed Date: 2011-01-31 Revised Date: 2011-09-20 |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 0372440 Medline TA: Arch Intern Med Country: United States |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 18-22 Citation Subset: AIM; IM |
Affiliation:
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Division of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine, Department of Medicine, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19102, USA. |
Export Citation:
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| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
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Clinical Trials as Topic Communicable Diseases* Decision Making Evidence-Based Medicine* Humans Practice Guidelines as Topic / standards* Societies, Medical United States |
| Comments/Corrections | |
Comment In:
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Arch Intern Med. 2011 Aug 8;171(15):1402-3
[PMID:
21824963
]
Arch Intern Med. 2011 Aug 8;171(15):1403-4; author reply 1403-4 [PMID: 21824964 ] Arch Intern Med. 2011 Jan 10;171(1):15-7 [PMID: 21220655 ] |
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