Evaluation of systematic reviews of treatment or prevention interventions

Abstract

In a previous article in this series we explained how the critical appraisal of research is an essential step in evidence-based health care because most published research is too poor in quality to be applied to clinical practice.1 Critical appraisal is made easier through the use of quality checklists that can help you to appraise research studies systematically and efficiently. The 3 basic appraisal questions are the same whether the clinical question is about treatment, diagnosis, prognosis, or causation: The first 2 articles in the EBN users' guide series focused on critical appraisal of primary studies of treatment or prevention.1,2 This guide will deal with critical appraisal of systematic reviews, beginning with a clinical scenario and applying the appraisal questions to the review by Glazener and Evans on the effectiveness of alarm interventions for nocturnal enuresis in children.4 ### How to critically appraise review articles Are the results of this systematic review valid? What were the results? Will the results help me in caring for my patients?