Table 1 Example of an evidence profile quality assessment given to the evaluators for them to grade in the pilot study. Example question: Should depressed patients in primary care be treated with SSRIs rather than tricyclics?
Outcome: Depression severity (measured with Hamilton Depression Rating Scale) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Studies | Design | Quality | Consistency | Directness |
8 trials Citalopram 38 trials Fluoxetine 25 trials Fluvoxamine 2 trials Nefazodone 18 trials Paroxetine 4 trials Sertaline 4 trials Velafaxine | RCTs | No serious flaws | No important inconsistency | Some uncertainty about relevance (outcome measure) |
Outcome: Transient side effects (drop-out from 6 week treatment) | ||||
8 trials Citalopram 50 trials Fluoxetine 27 trials Fluvoxamine 4 trials Nefazodone 23 trials Paroxetine 6 trials Sertaline 5 trials Velafaxine | RCTs | No serious flaws | No important inconsistency | Some uncertainty about relevance (outcome measure) |
Outcome: Poisoning fatalities | ||||
Office for National Statistics (British) | Observational data (national statistics) | Serious flaw, population based Reporting bias | Only one study | Direct |