title: Effect of using cardiovascular risk scoring in routine risk assessment in primary prevention of cardiovascular disease: protocol for an overview of systematic reviews.
abstract: Major clinical practice guidelines recommend assessing risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) using absolute/global/total CVD risk scores. However, the effectiveness of using them in clinical practice, despite publication of numerous randomised controlled trials (RCTs), is still poorly understood. To summarise and analyse current knowledge in this field, we will carry out an overview of existing systematic reviews (SRs). The objective of this overview will be to assess the effect of using cardiovascular risk scoring in routine risk assessment in primary prevention of CVD compared with standard care.
  
  
  
  We will include SRs and meta-analyses which take into account RCTs and quasi-RCTs investigating the effect of using cardiovascular risk scoring in routine risk assessment in primary prevention of CVD. SRs will be retrieved from 4 bibliographical databases and reference lists of identified reviews. Additionally, the PROSPERO database will be searched for unpublished, ongoing or recently completed SRs. 2 reviewers will assess the SRs independently for eligibility and bias. The data will be extracted to a special form. Any disagreement will be resolved by discussion. In case of lack of consensus, a third author will arbitrate. The overview of SRs will be reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement.
  
  
  
  Ethics approval is not required for overview of SRs. We will summarise evidence concerning whether use of the absolute/global/total CVD risk scoring tools in primary prevention of CVD is effective and supported with scientific data or not. If we face unsatisfactory confirmation, we will highlight a need for further research and advice on how to plan such a study. We will submit the results of our study for peer-review publication in a journal indexed in the international bibliographic database of biomedical information.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Chair of Internal Medicine and Gerontology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Krzysztof
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Studziński
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Chair of Internal Medicine and Gerontology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tomasik
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Chair of Internal Medicine and Gerontology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Janusz
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Krzyszton
authors.affiliation: Institute of Health and Nutrition Sciences, Czestochowa University of Technology, Czestochowa, Poland.
authors.forename: Jacek
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jóźwiak
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Chair of Internal Medicine and Gerontology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Windak
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002319:Cardiovascular System / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D011322:Primary Prevention / Q000379:methods*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012107:Research Design; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012307:Risk Factors; D000078202:Systematic Reviews as Topic; D015201:Meta-Analysis as Topic
keywords: Cardiovascular Diseases; Cardiovascular System; Primary Prevention; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors