Author
Pablo Alonso-Coello
Other affiliations: University of Barcelona, McMaster University Medical Centre, Hospital de Sant Pau ...read more
Bio: Pablo Alonso-Coello is an academic researcher from Cochrane Collaboration. The author has contributed to research in topics: Systematic review & Guideline. The author has an hindex of 64, co-authored 338 publications receiving 33268 citations. Previous affiliations of Pablo Alonso-Coello include University of Barcelona & McMaster University Medical Centre.
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
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TL;DR: The advantages of the GRADE system are explored, which is increasingly being adopted by organisations worldwide and which is often praised for its high level of consistency.
Abstract: Guidelines are inconsistent in how they rate the quality of evidence and the strength of recommendations. This article explores the advantages of the GRADE system, which is increasingly being adopted by organisations worldwide
13,324 citations
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McMaster University1, University Hospital of Basel2, Autonomous University of Barcelona3, Mayo Clinic4, University at Buffalo5, University of South Florida6, Case Western Reserve University7, Oregon Health & Science University8, Duke University9, United States Department of Veterans Affairs10, University Medical Center Freiburg11
TL;DR: In the GRADE approach, randomized trials start as high-quality evidence and observational studies as low- quality evidence, but both can be rated down if most of the relevant evidence comes from studies that suffer from a high risk of bias.
2,059 citations
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McMaster University1, University Hospital of Basel2, Autonomous University of Barcelona3, Harvard University4, Mayo Clinic5, Karolinska University Hospital6, Duke University7, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine8, Case Western Reserve University9, University Medical Center Freiburg10, Centre for Mental Health11, Vanderbilt University12
TL;DR: It is suggested that examination of 95% confidence intervals (CIs) provides the optimal primary approach to decisions regarding imprecision and rating down the quality of evidence is required if clinical action would differ if the upper versus the lower boundary of the CI represented the truth.
1,844 citations
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McMaster University1, Norwegian Institute of Public Health2, University of Basel3, University of London4, Oregon Health & Science University5, Autonomous University of Barcelona6, Bond University7, University at Buffalo8, University of Florida9, Health Canada10, Medical Research Council11, Case Western Reserve University12
TL;DR: Credibility is increased if subgroup effects are based on a small number of a priori hypotheses with a specified direction; subgroup comparisons come from within rather than between studies; tests of interaction generate low P-values; and have a biological rationale.
1,535 citations
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McMaster University1, Mayo Clinic2, University Hospital of Basel3, Autonomous University of Barcelona4, University of South Florida5, United States Department of Veterans Affairs6, Case Western Reserve University7, Duke University8, University Medical Center Freiburg9, Oregon Health & Science University10, University at Buffalo11
TL;DR: In the GRADE approach, randomized trials start as high-quality evidence and observational studies as low- quality evidence, but both can be rated down if a body of evidence is associated with a high risk of publication bias.
1,295 citations
Cited by
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TL;DR: Moher et al. as mentioned in this paper introduce PRISMA, an update of the QUOROM guidelines for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses, which is used in this paper.
Abstract: David Moher and colleagues introduce PRISMA, an update of the QUOROM guidelines for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses
62,157 citations
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TL;DR: The QUOROM Statement (QUality Of Reporting Of Meta-analyses) as mentioned in this paper was developed to address the suboptimal reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Abstract: Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have become increasingly important in health care. Clinicians read them to keep up to date with their field,1,2 and they are often used as a starting point for developing clinical practice guidelines. Granting agencies may require a systematic review to ensure there is justification for further research,3 and some health care journals are moving in this direction.4 As with all research, the value of a systematic review depends on what was done, what was found, and the clarity of reporting. As with other publications, the reporting quality of systematic reviews varies, limiting readers' ability to assess the strengths and weaknesses of those reviews.
Several early studies evaluated the quality of review reports. In 1987, Mulrow examined 50 review articles published in 4 leading medical journals in 1985 and 1986 and found that none met all 8 explicit scientific criteria, such as a quality assessment of included studies.5 In 1987, Sacks and colleagues6 evaluated the adequacy of reporting of 83 meta-analyses on 23 characteristics in 6 domains. Reporting was generally poor; between 1 and 14 characteristics were adequately reported (mean = 7.7; standard deviation = 2.7). A 1996 update of this study found little improvement.7
In 1996, to address the suboptimal reporting of meta-analyses, an international group developed a guidance called the QUOROM Statement (QUality Of Reporting Of Meta-analyses), which focused on the reporting of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials.8 In this article, we summarize a revision of these guidelines, renamed PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses), which have been updated to address several conceptual and practical advances in the science of systematic reviews (Box 1).
Box 1
Conceptual issues in the evolution from QUOROM to PRISMA
46,935 citations
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TL;DR: A structured summary is provided including, as applicable, background, objectives, data sources, study eligibility criteria, participants, interventions, study appraisal and synthesis methods, results, limitations, conclusions and implications of key findings.
31,379 citations
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26,749 citations
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TL;DR: An Explanation and Elaboration of the PRISMA Statement is presented and updated guidelines for the reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analyses are presented.
Abstract: Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are essential to summarize evidence relating to efficacy and safety of health care interventions accurately and reliably. The clarity and transparency of these reports, however, is not optimal. Poor reporting of systematic reviews diminishes their value to clinicians, policy makers, and other users.
Since the development of the QUOROM (QUality Of Reporting Of Meta-analysis) Statement—a reporting guideline published in 1999—there have been several conceptual, methodological, and practical advances regarding the conduct and reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Also, reviews of published systematic reviews have found that key information about these studies is often poorly reported. Realizing these issues, an international group that included experienced authors and methodologists developed PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) as an evolution of the original QUOROM guideline for systematic reviews and meta-analyses of evaluations of health care interventions.
The PRISMA Statement consists of a 27-item checklist and a four-phase flow diagram. The checklist includes items deemed essential for transparent reporting of a systematic review. In this Explanation and Elaboration document, we explain the meaning and rationale for each checklist item. For each item, we include an example of good reporting and, where possible, references to relevant empirical studies and methodological literature. The PRISMA Statement, this document, and the associated Web site (http://www.prisma-statement.org/) should be helpful resources to improve reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
25,711 citations