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. 2022 Jan 7;19(2):685.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph19020685.

Usefulness of Cochrane Reviews in Clinical Guideline Development-A Survey of 585 Recommendations

Christoffer Bruun Korfitsen  1 , Marie-Louise Kirkegaard Mikkelsen  1 , Anja Ussing  1 , Karen Christina Walker  1   2 , Jeanett Friis Rohde  1   2 , Henning Keinke Andersen  1 , Simon Tarp  1 , Mina Nicole Händel  1   2
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Usefulness of Cochrane Reviews in Clinical Guideline Development-A Survey of 585 Recommendations

Christoffer Bruun Korfitsen et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

The Danish Health Authority develops clinical practice guidelines to support clinical decision-making based on the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system and prioritizes using Cochrane reviews. The objective of this study was to explore the usefulness of Cochrane reviews as a source of evidence in the development of clinical recommendations. Evidence-based recommendations in guidelines published by the Danish Health Authority between 2014 and 2021 were reviewed. For each recommendation, it was noted if and how Cochrane reviews were utilized. In total, 374 evidence-based recommendations and 211 expert consensus recommendations were published between 2014 and 2021. Of the 374 evidence-based recommendations, 106 included evidence from Cochrane reviews. In 28 recommendations, all critical and important outcomes included evidence from Cochrane reviews. In 36 recommendations, a minimum of all critical outcomes included evidence from Cochrane reviews, but not all important outcomes. In 33 recommendations, some but not all critical outcomes included evidence from Cochrane reviews. Finally, in nine recommendations, some of the important outcomes included evidence from Cochrane reviews. In almost one-third of the evidence-based recommendations, Cochrane reviews were used to inform clinical recommendations. This evaluation should inform future evaluations of Cochrane review uptake in clinical practice guidelines concerning outcomes important for clinical decision-making.

Keywords: Cochrane; GRADE; clinical practice guideline; core outcome set; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors hold positions within The Danish Health Authority. After submitting the present paper, C.B.K. has acquired a position as research assistant with Cochrane Denmark. H.K.A. previously (until 2018) held a position as Managing Editor for the Cochrane Colorectal Group. The authors declare no other conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Evidence-based recommendations with outcomes informed by evidence from Cochrane reviews in Danish National Clinical Guideline development from 2014–2021.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Evidence-based recommendations informed by evidence from Cochrane reviews by topic in Danish National Clinical Guideline development from 2014 to 2021.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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