Evidence Based Medicine IV: how to find an evidence-based answer to a clinical question? Make a critically appraised topic!

G M A Beckers; K Herbst; M Kaefer; L Harper; M Castagnetti; D Bagli; N Kalfa; M Fossum; ESPU Research Committee

doi:10.1016/j.jpurol.2019.05.009

Evidence Based Medicine IV: how to find an evidence-based answer to a clinical question? Make a critically appraised topic!

J Pediatr Urol. 2019 Aug;15(4):409-411. doi: 10.1016/j.jpurol.2019.05.009. Epub 2019 May 14.

Authors

G M A Beckers¹, K Herbst², M Kaefer³, L Harper⁴, M Castagnetti⁵, D Bagli⁶, N Kalfa⁷, M Fossum⁸; ESPU Research Committee

Affiliations

¹ Department of Urology, Pediatric Urology Section, Amsterdam University Medical Centre Location VUmc, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Electronic address: gma.beckers@amsterdamumc.nl.
² Division of Urology, Department of Research, Connecticut Children's Medical Center, Hartford, CT, United States.
³ Riley Hospital for Children, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, United States.
⁴ Service de Chirurgie Pédiatrique, Hôpital Pellegrin-Enfants, CHU de Bordeaux, France.
⁵ Section of Pediatric Urology, University Hospital of Padova, Padua, Italy.
⁶ Division of Urology, Department of Surgery and Physiology, University of Toronto, Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children and Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
⁷ Service de Chirurgie Urologique Pédiatrique, Hôpital Lapeyronie, CHU de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, France.
⁸ Division of Pediatric Urology, Astrid Lindgren Children's Hospital, Karolinska University Hospital, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

PMID: 31266683
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpurol.2019.05.009

Abstract

This manuscript is the fourth in a five part series related to evidence based medicine (EBM) provided by the European society of pediatric urology (ESPU) research committee. It will present a way to come to a quick and critical appraisal of available evidence on a specific topic: a CAT (critically appraised topic). The way how to write a cat is described for interventions to be compared to a control group, and for other, more generalized clinical questions. While systematic reviews provide a throughout overview of all evidence available, a CAT provides a shorter way to come to quick insights based on EBM.

Keywords: Critically appraised topic; Educational article; Evidence-based medicine; Level of evidence; Review.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Biomedical Research / methods*
Child
Evidence-Based Medicine / methods*
Humans
Urology*