Abstract
The use of the literature to support growth in knowledge and understanding and the use of these insights to prompt better medical care is fundamental to basic science and clinical research. References are used to support or refute the information that is presented in the published manuscripts. To extend this use of published literature to help make decisions about the care of patients has been referred to as “Evidence-based Medicine.” With uncommon medical conditions, there is often sparse evidence on which to base clinical judgments, and published evidence-based reports are relatively easy to develop through routine literature searches. In common problems with volumes of published literature, often with multiple different recommendations and decision paradigms, comprehensive evidence-based summaries are difficult and costly.
The Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (recently renamed the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality) has developed a comprehensive effort to systematically review the literature, to synthesize the best evidence, and to use this evidence to facilitate evidence-based patient care. It has done this by partnering with public and private organizations as “science partners” and has completed these projects through designated Evidence-based Practice Centers. The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery has nominated or participated in a number of these evidence-based reports.
The article by Rosenfeld, Casselbrant, and Hannley 1 describes the work of the AHRQ to create an evidence-based report on Acute Otitis Media. The authors provide a thorough usable summary of the extensive full report. In addition, they describe the process and methods by which evidence-based reports are developed that is a good basis of understanding for readers who are not familiar with these methods. This article is a must-read, not only for clinicians who care for patients with acute otitis media, but also for investigators who have an interest in or participate in evidence-based research.