Systematic Reviews in Health Care: A Practical Guide

by Paul Glasziou, Les Irwig, Chris Bain, Graham Colditz

Overview

The past two decades have seen increasing interest and developments in methods for doing high quality systematic reviews. This volume provides a clear introduction to the concepts of systematic reviews, and lucidly describes the difficulties and traps to avoid. A unique feature of the manual is its description of the different methods needed for different types of health care questions: frequency of disease, prognosis, diagnosis, risk, and management. This book also provides illustrative examples and exercises for each of the sections.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521799621
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	11/08/2001
Pages:	148
Product dimensions:	6.93(w) x 9.76(h) x 0.51(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction; Part I. General Methods: 1. The question; 2. Finding relevant studies; 3. Appraising and selecting studies; 4. Summarising and synthesising the studies; 5. Applicability: returning to the question; Part II. Question-Specific Methods: 6. Interventions; 7. Frequency and rate; 8. Diagnostic tests; 9. Aetiology and risk factors; 10. Prediction: prognosis and risk; Appendix A. Literature searching methods; Appendix B. Software for meta-analysis; Glossary; Acronyms and abbreviations; References; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"This book is well designed for people who are looking for an introduction to the field of systematic reviews. This is a worthy addition to the practice of evidence-based medicine." Doody's Notes

"The book serves as an excellently readable introduction to the whole subject of formal literature reviewing." Doctors.net

"This stands as a strong competitor in the growing list of available resources that lead the reader through the systematic review process...an excellent resource..." Teaching and learning in Medicine

"[Systematic Reviews in Health Care: A Practical Guide]...is very well written and extremely easy to read. It is a true practical guide through the maze of clinical studies. Complex issues are presented in a clear, concise, logical, and easy-to-follow manner...I believe this book should be essential reading for all practicing clinicians and should be prominently displayed in every medical library." Southern Medical Journal

From the Publisher

The selection of any two different studies related to a specific question can lead to conflicting answers. But a systematic review and synthesis of all the available studies can sometimes lead to a clearer understanding of the question in answer and, hopefully, a more correct answer. Drawing substantially on material originally published as an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council guide titled , the authors of this guide explain the main considerations and methodologies of conducting systemic reviews of medical studies. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)