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. 2000 Apr 22;320(7242):1107-11.
doi: 10.1136/bmj.320.7242.1107.

Evaluating "payback" on biomedical research from papers cited in clinical guidelines: applied bibliometric study

J Grant  1 , R Cottrell, F Cluzeau, G Fawcett
Affiliations

Evaluating "payback" on biomedical research from papers cited in clinical guidelines: applied bibliometric study

J Grant et al. BMJ. .

Abstract

Objectives: To develop a methodology for evaluating the impact of research on health care, and to characterise the papers cited on clinical guidelines.

Design: The bibliographic details of the papers cited in 15 clinical guidelines, developed in and for the United Kingdom, were collated and analysed with applied bibliometric techniques.

Results: The median age of papers cited in clinical guidelines was eight years; most papers were published by authors living in either the United States (36%) or the United Kingdom (25%)-this is two and a half times more than expected as about 10% of all biomedical outputs are published in the United Kingdom; and clinical guidelines do not cite basic research papers.

Conclusion: Analysis of the evidence base of clinical guidelines may be one way of tracking the flow of knowledge from the laboratory to the clinic. Moreover, such analysis provides a useful, clinically relevant method for evaluating research outcomes and different strategies in research and development.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Age of papers cited in clinical guidelines
Figure 2
Figure 2
Nationality of authors of papers cited in clinical guidelines
Figure 3
Figure 3
Research level of journals cited in clinical guidelines
Figure 4
Figure 4
Research level of journals cited in subsequent generations of papers
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

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    1. North of England Evidence Based Guideline Development Project. ACE inhibitors in the primary care management of adults with symptomatic heart failure. Newcastle upon Tyne: Centre for Health Services Research, University of Newcastle upon Tyne; 1998.
    1. North of England Evidence Based Guideline Development Project. The primary care management of stable angina. Newcastle upon Tyne: Centre for Health Services Research, University of Newcastle upon Tyne; 1996.

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