Table 3.
Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation of the guidelines
| Appraisal of Guidelines Research and Evaluation criterion | EULAR [6] | Ottawa Panel [11] | ICSI [9] | CCC [8] | AAOS [10] | Schnitzer/ACR [7] |
| Scope/purpose | ||||||
| 1. Overall objective(s) specifically described | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 2. Clinical question(s) specifically described | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| 3. Patients to whom the guideline is meant to apply specifically described | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Stakeholder involvement | ||||||
| 4. Development group included individuals from all relevant professional groups | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 5. Patients' views and preferences sought | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 6. Target users clearly defined | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| 7. Guideline piloted among end users | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Rigour of development | ||||||
| 8. Systematic methods used to search for evidence | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 9. Criteria for selecting evidence clearly described | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 10. Methods used for formulating the recommendations clearly described | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 11. Health benefits, side effects and risks considered in formulating the recommendations | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| 12. Explicit link between recommendations and supporting evidence | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| 13. Guideline externally reviewed by experts prior to publication | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 14. Procedure for updating the guideline provided | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Clarity/presentation | ||||||
| 15. Specific and unambiguous recommendations | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 16. Different options for diagnosis and/or treatment of the condition clearly presented | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 3 |
| 17. Key recommendations easily identifiable | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 1 |
| 18. Guideline supported with tools for application | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Applicability | ||||||
| 19. Potential organizational barriers in applying the recommendations discussed | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 20. Potential cost implications of applying the recommendations considered | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 21. Guideline presents key review criteria for monitoring and audit purposes | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Editorial independence | ||||||
| 22. Guideline editorially independent from the funding body | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 23. Conflicts of interest of guideline development members recorded | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
AAOS, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons; ACR, American College of Rheumatology; CCC, Canadian Consensus Conference; EULAR, European League Against Rheumatism; ICSI, Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement. 1, Strongly disagree; 2, disagree; 3, agree; 4, strongly agree.