Objective To evaluate the quality of Chinese clinical practice guidelines published in domestic medical journals in 2011. Methods The following 4 Chinese databases including WanFang Data, VIP, CNKI and CBM were searched from January 2011 to December 2011. The quality of included guidelines was assessed by using AGREE II. Results A total of 75 guidelines published in 2011 were included. Among them, 10 guidelines (13%) stated the conflict of interest, 10 guidelines (13%) mentioned evidence-based developing, 5 guidelines (7%) performed evidence grading system, 8 guidelines (11%) performed recommendation strength grading system, and 4 guidelines (5%) performed both evidence and recommendation strength grading systems. The ratio of the 6 domains’ scores of AGREEⅡ were as follows: scope and purpose (18%), stakeholder involvement (11%), rigour of development (8%), clarity of presentation (34%), applicability (5%), and editorial independence (14%). Conclusion Compared with the guidelines published before, the guidelines of 2011 have a higher quality and some of them are progressively standardized in developing methodology.
Objective To systematically review the methodological quality of guidelines concerning infertility, so as to provide references for clinical practice. Methods Guidelines concerning infertility were electronically retrieved (from inception to Feb. 2013) in PubMed, EMbase, CBM, WanFang Data, CNKI, GIN guideline database guideline development websites (including NGC, NICE, SIGN, NZGG, SOGC, etc.), and medical associtation websites (including IFFS, FIGO, ESHRE, NFOG, RCOG, ASRM, ACOG, etc.). We also searched Chinese guideline websites including the website of the National Health and Family Planning Commission of People’s Republic of China, CGC (China Guideline Clearinghouse), and CPGN (Clinical Practice Guideline Net). Two reviews independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and assessed the quality of guideline development and reporting using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE II). Results a) A total of 16 guidelines concerning infertility were included, with development time ranging from 1998 to 2012. Among 16 guidelines, 10 guidelines were made by the USA, 3 by Britan, 1 by the Europe, and 1 by America and Europe. b) The scores of guidelines according to the domains of AGREE II decreased from “Clarity of presentations, scope and purpose”, “Participants”, “Applicability”, “Rigour of development”, and “Editorial independence”. 16 guidelines were generally low in quality. The levels of recommendations were Level A (5 guidelines), Level B (8 guidelines), and Level C (3 guidelines). c) Four evidence-based guidelines scored the top three in the domain of “Rigour of development”. d) The recommendations of different guidelines were fairly the same. e) No guidelines on infertility have been developed in China. Conclusion a) The guidelines on infertility should be improved in “Rigour of development” and “Applicability” in future. Conficts of interest should be addressed. b) Guidelines are recommended to be developed on the basis of the methods of evidence-based medicine, and best evidence is recommended. c) National organizations such as ASRM should be established in China, so as to develop biomedicine and TCM guidelines based on evidence and regulate the treatment. d) For the general assessment of guidelines, AGREE II should offer threshold criteria of suggestion.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the quality of the clinical practice guidelines of acupuncture in China, in order to identify the status quo and challenges in the development of guidelines. MethodsWe evaluated the quality of the 5 clinical practice guidelines of acupuncture in China through the guideline appraisal instrument "Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation Ⅱ" (AGREE Ⅱ). Four appraisers rated 6 domains of each guideline independently. ResultsFrom the assessment with AGREE Ⅱ, the mean scores of the six domains were as follows: "scope and purpose"55%, "stakeholder involvement" 27%, "rigor of development" 4%, "clarity of presentation" 55%, "applicability" 4%, and "editorial independence" 1%. ConclusionThe quantity of acupuncture guidelines is small and their quality is low due to the lack of methodological issues.
ObjectiveTo systematically assess the quality of evidence-based clinical guidelines and to compare the differences and similarities between recommendations, so as to provide references for clinical application. MethodsDatabases such as the TRIP, PubMed, CNKI, VIP, WanFang Data, CBM, National Guideline Clearinghouse and Guidelines International Network were searched to collect evidence-based guidelines on medication therapy for children with rheumatic fever. Methodological quality of included guidelines was assessed according to the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, and differences and similarities among recommendations were compared. ResultsOnly one evidence-based clinical guideline from Australia was included. Among 6 domains which were rated using the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, "scope and purpose", "stakeholder involvement", "rigor of development", "clarity and presentation" and "applicability" were scored more than 50%; while "editorial independence" was scored less than 50%. ConclusionThe included guideline is of relatively high quality; however, its application among Chinese population still has limitations. Thus, the development of national guidelines is urgently needed.
ObjectiveTo review guidelines on diet intervention for hypertension, compare the similarities/differences and the regularity of the guidelines, discuss the prevention and treatment effects of diet intervention for hypertension, promote the understanding of the guide, and to explore the best method of diet intervention for hypertension. MethodsDatabase such as CNKI, EMbase, PubMed, etc., as well as guideline websites were searched from inception to February 28th, 2014, for collecting guidelines on diet intervention in the prevention and treatment of hypertension. The Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE Ⅱ) were applied to assess methodological quality of the guidelines. Characteristics of diets recommended by the guidelines were analyzed through comparing the different regions and quality levels of the guidelines. ResultsA total of 27 guidelines on diet intervention for hypertension were included. They were formulated by 5 continents, 9 countries, 2 regions (Taiwan of China and Europe), and 1 international organization (WHO). According to the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, 13 guidelines were graded as Level A (recommendation) and 14 were graded as Level B (recommended after changes), respectively. The domains were more than 60% except for "rigor of development" (57.89±7.71)% and "applicability" (58.39±6.29)%. Each guideline recommended low sodium diet (usually:5 to 6 g/d; Oceania:4 g/d; North America:the amount of sodium intake should be decreased as age increases). The amount of alcohol intake was generally 30 mL/d for men and 20 mL/d for women. All included guidelines recommended to increase the intake of fruits, vegetables, and potassium. ConclusionCurrently, more than half of diet intervention recommendations for hypertension in different countries and regions are still needs to be improved and modified. Diet recommendations differ in regions, gender, and age.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the quality of guidelines concerning management of helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection, so as to improve the guidelines of low quality and promote the clinical practice of high quality guidelines. MethodDatabases including PubMed, CNKI, Guidelines International Network (GIN), National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC), National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and Google search engine were searched from January 2005 to April 2015 to collect guidelines concerning H. pylori management about recent ten years. The methodological quality of included guidelines was evaluated according to the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, and the difference in indications and recommended first-line therapy of H. pylori eradication among different guidelines were compared. ResultsA total of 13 guidelines were included. According to the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, the highest scores were for clarity and presentation 92.6% (78%-100%) and the lowest were for editorial independence 35.7% (0%-92%). The mean scores for rest domains were: scope and purpose 70.2% (39%-100%), stakeholder involvement 41.4% (22%-75%), rigor of development 41.7% (11%-82%), applicability 58.1% (35%-85%). ConclusionThe quality of guidelines for management of H. pylori infection is not high. Great efforts are needed to provide reliable and high quality guidelines, especially for the domains of stakeholder involvement, rigor of development, and editorial independence.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the quality of pancreatic cancer guidelines using evidence-based methods based on the global burden of pancreatic cancer, so as to explore its status, region distribution, characteristics of coverage themes, and difference of therapies recommended by the guidelines of various quality, and to provide references for clinical decisionmaking. MethodsPubMed, The Cochrane Library (Issue 11, 2013), CBM, CNKI, and VIP, as well as the website of National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC), Guidelines International Network (GIN), and National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) were systematically searched for pancreatic cancer treatment guidelines. The Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE Ⅲ) was applied to assess methodological quality of included guidelines. ResultsA total of 14 relevant guidelines (including five evidence-based guidelines) were included involving seven countries of four continents (Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania) and four international academic organizations. There were only two domains, namely "scope and purpose" and "clarity of presentations" which got high average scores (more than 60%) among all 14 guidelines. The mean AGREE domain scores in guidelines varied with areas, and the quality of five evidence-based guidelines was superior to that established by consensus. According to the outcomes of AGREE Ⅲ, 11 guidelines were weakly recommended, while 3 were not recommended due to poor methodological quality. The subjects of 14 guidelines covered six treatment categories, including chemotherapy, surgery, radiotherapy, support therapy, radiotherapy, and interventional therapy. ConclusionThe overall methodological quality of pancreatic cancer guidelines is not high among different countries or regions. The quality of evidence-based guidelines is superior to that established by consensus. Chemotherapy, surgery, radiotherapy and support therapy were reccommended as predominant choice by these guidelines.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the quality, status of clinical practice guidelines on stomatology in China and discuss existing problems, so as to provide references for developing evidence-based guidelines. MethodsComprehensive search was conducted up to January 2014 for relevant clinical practice guidelines on stomatology, and the retrieval date was January 30th, 2014. After data extraction from eligibility guidelines, the quality was evaluated using the AGREE Ⅱ instrument and then descriptive analysis was performed. ResultsFinally a total of 18 guidelines were included, of which, 13 were for oral and maxillofacial surgery diseases. Based on the AGREE Ⅱ instrument, the average scores on the six domains were as follows:71.1% for scope and purpose, 40.1% for stakeholder involvement, 28.8% for rigor of development, 71.5% for clarity of presentation, 42.6% for applicability, and 8.6% for editorial independence. ConclusionThe overall quality of clinical practice guidelines on stomatology in China is relatively poor, only a few diseases are concerned, and no evidence-based guideline has been developed so far. However, considered the limitations of this study, the results of this study is only for a reference.
ObjectivesTo assess the quality of clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for diagnosis and management of cough in China, and to provide methodological experiences for updating and developing the evidence-based guideline in this field in future. MethodsWe searched CBM, WanFang Data, VIP and CNKI databases, and Chinese clinical guidelines' website to identify and select CPGs related to cough in China. Four reviewers independently evaluated the quality of eligible guidelines using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) Ⅱ instrument. ResultsSix guidelines were included. The mean scores for six AGREE Ⅱ domains were low:scope and purpose 61.1%, stakeholder involvement 26.6%, rigor of development 16.7%, clarity and presentation 58.3%, applicability 11.1%, and editorial independence 0.0%. ConclusionThe quality of guidelines for cough in China is low. More efforts are urgently needed to develop high quality Chinese guidelines using methodologically rigorous development frameworks and strengthen guideline reporting.
ObjectiveTo evaluate the quality of Chinese clinical practice guidelines published in domestic medical journals from 2012 to 2013 and compare with the quality of guidelines published before. MethodsCNKI, CBM and WanFang Data were searched to collect guidelines from January 1st, 2012 to December 31st, 2013. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria and extracted data. The AGREE Ⅱ instrument was applied to assess methodological quality of included guidelines. ResultsA total of 78 guidelines were identified. Among them, 37 guidelines were published in 2012, and 41 in 2013. The scores of 6 domains' scores of AGREE Ⅱ were as follows:scope and purpose (24%), stakeholder involvement (11%), rigour of development (7%), clarity of presentation (32%), applicability (7%), and editorial independence (4%). The results of subgroup analysis indicated that, the scores in 5 domains (except applicability) of the guidelines published in CSCD journals were higher than those of non CSCD journals; the scores in 4 domains (except stakeholder involvement and applicability) of the guidelines received funds were higher than those of guidelines with no funds; and the scores in 5 domains (except editorial independence) of the guidelines published in 2013 were higher than those in 2012. ConclusionThe guidelines published from 2012 to 2013 have higher quality than guidelines published before 2012, but great discrepancies exist when comparing with international guidelines of average level. Chinese guidelines developers should attach importance to international methodology to develop guidelines, and use the AGREE Ⅱ instrument to develop and report guidelines.