The quality of guidelines for diabetic foot ulcers: A critical appraisal using the AGREE II instrument

PLoS One. 2019 Sep 23;14(9):e0217555. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217555. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the quality of clinical practice guidelines(CPGs) for patients with diabetic foot worldwide. A search of guidelines websites, databases and academic institutions websites was performed from January 1st, 2010, until June 30th, 2018. Four assessors independently rated the quality of each CPG using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE) II instrument. Twelve CPGs satisfied the inclusion criteria. The median scores for the 6 AGREE II domains (scope and purpose, stakeholder involvement, rigor of development, clarity of presentation, applicability, and editorial independence) were 92.5%, 72.5%, 71.5%, 89%, 47%, and 77%, respectively. The overall quality of the CPGs was good since the majority of the CPGs reached an overall guideline quality between 5 and 7 points. Different CPGs had widely varying scores in the same area, ranging from 25 to 94 points.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis

MeSH terms

  • Diabetic Foot / diagnosis*
  • Diabetic Foot / therapy*
  • Foot Ulcer / diagnosis*
  • Foot Ulcer / therapy*
  • Humans
  • Practice Guidelines as Topic
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Severity of Illness Index

Grants and funding

The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.