Table 2.
JBI levels of evidence for effectiveness, diagnosis and meaningfulness23
| Level of evidence | Study designs | ||
| Effectiveness | Diagnosis | Meaningfulness | |
| 1 | Experimental designs including: | Studies of test accuracy among consecutive patients: | Qualitative or mixed-methods systematic review |
| a. Systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) | a. Systematic review of studies of test accuracy among consecutive patients | ||
| b. Systematic review of RCTs and other study designs | |||
| c. mRCTs | b. Study of test accuracy among consecutive patients | ||
| d. Pseudo-RCTs | |||
| 2 | Quasi-experimental designs including: | Studies of test accuracy among non-consecutive patients: | Qualitative or mixed-methods synthesis |
| a. Systematic review of quasi-experimental studies | a. Systematic review of studies of test accuracy among non-consecutive patients | ||
| b. Systematic review of quasi- experimental and other lower study designs | |||
| d. Quasi-experimental prospectively controlled study | b. Study of test accuracy among non-consecutive patients | ||
| e. Pretest post-test or historic/retrospective control group study | |||
| 3 | Observational—Analytical designs including: | Diagnostic case-control studies: | Single qualitative study |
| a. Systematic review of comparable cohort studies | a. Systematic review of diagnostic case-control studies | ||
| b. Systematic review of comparable cohort and other lower study designs | |||
| c. Cohort study with control group | b. Diagnostic case-control study | ||
| d. Case controlled study | |||
| e. Observational study without a control group | |||
| 4 | Observational—Descriptive designs including: | Diagnostic yield studies: | Systematic review of expert opinion |
| a. Systematic review of descriptive studies | a. Systematic review of diagnostic yield studies b. Individual diagnostic yield study |
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| b. Cross-sectional study | |||
| c. Case series | b. Individual diagnostic yield study | ||
| d. Case study | |||
| 5 | Expert opinion and bench research including: | Expert opinion and bench research: | Expert opinion |
| a. Systematic review of expert opinion | a. Systematic review of expert opinion | ||
| b. Expert consensus | b. Expert consensus | ||
| c. Bench research/single expert opinion | c. Bench research/ single expert opinion | ||
JBI, Joanna Briggs Institute.