Critical appraisal of review articles.
Review articles are an important source of clinical information for family physicians. However, the volume of available reviews is vast and their scientific quality varies enormously. Family physicians must be able to identify trustworthy reviews quickly. This article outlines practical and flexible guidelines for critical appraisal and discusses the respective roles of review articles and original research reports in guiding clinical practice.
Department of Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ont.
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Hutchison
D015982:Bias; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing / Q000592:standards*; D005194:Family Practice / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D017408:Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards; D012106:Research / Q000592:standards*; D012196:Review Literature as Topic