Systematic reviews aim to provide a comprehensive and unbiased summary of existing evidence on a particular topic. Assessing them for risk of bias is crucial because it helps ensure that the findings of the systematic review are valid and trustworthy.
| Therapy - Finding and Using articles about Therapy |
| Therapy/Prevention Article Appraisal Guide |
| Therapy worksheet |
| Diagnosis - Finding and Using articles about Diagnostic Tests |
| Diagnosis Article Appraisal Guide |
| Diagnosis worksheet |
| Prognosis - Finding and Using articles about Prognosis |
| Prognosis Article Appraisal Guide |
| Prognosis worksheet |
| Harm - Finding and Using articles about causation/harm/etiology |
| Harm/Etiology Article Appraisal Guide |
| Harm worksheet |
Dr. Trisha Greenhalgh is a British physician and professor medicine that wrote a series of 10 articles in the 1990's introducing non-experts to finding medical articles and assessing their value.
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. The Medline database. BMJ, 315(7101), 180-183. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Getting your bearings (deciding what the paper is about). BMJ, 315(7102), 243-246. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). Assessing the methodological quality of published papers. BMJ, 315(7103), 305-308. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Statistics for the non-statistician. I: Different types of data need different statistical tests. BMJ, 315(7104), 364-366. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Statistics for the non-statistician. II: "Significant" relations and their pitfalls. BMJ, 315(7105), 422-425. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Papers that report drug trials. BMJ, 315(7106), 480-483. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Papers that report diagnostic or screening tests. BMJ, 315(7107), 540-543. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). How to read a paper. Papers that tell you what things cost (economic analyses). BMJ, 315(7108), 596-599. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T. (1997). Papers that summarise other papers (systematic reviews and meta-analyses). BMJ, 315(7109), 672-675. [pdf]
Greenhalgh, T., & Taylor, R. (1997). Papers that go beyond numbers (qualitative research). BMJ, 315(7110), 740-743. [pdf]