| Study | Reason for exclusion |
|---|---|
| Adam 1994 | Not double‐blinded |
| Adam 1995 | Not double‐blinded |
| Adam 1996 | Not double‐blinded |
| Adam 2000a | Not double‐blinded |
| Adam 2000b | Not double‐blinded |
| Adam 2001 | Not double‐blinded |
| Aujard 1995 | Not double‐blinded |
| Bottaro 2012 | Open‐label study |
| Breese 1974 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Cohen 2002 | Not double‐blinded |
| Davies 1995 | Not only acute GABHS tonsillopharyngitis |
| Del Mar 2008 | Commentary of an RCT |
| De Meyere 1992 | Not an RCT |
| Denny 1953 | Not double‐blinded |
| Disney 1979 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Dykhuizen 1996 | Not double‐blinded |
| Eslami 2014 | Not double‐blinded |
| Esposito 2002 | Not double‐blinded |
| Feder 1999 | Not double‐blinded |
| Gerber 1986 | Not double‐blinded |
| Gerber 1999a | Did not report any clinical outcomes |
| Gooch 1993 | Not double‐blinded |
| Granizio 2008 | Pooled analysis; not original studies |
| Hamill 1993 | Not double‐blinded |
| Haverkorn 1971 | Not an RCT Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Holm 1991 | Not double‐blinded |
| Howe 1997 | Not double‐blinded |
| Kuroki 2013 | Open‐label study |
| Lennon 2008 | Not double‐blinded (investigator‐blinded only) |
| Llerena 2011 | Meta‐analysis |
| Matsen 1974 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| McCarty 1992b | Not double‐blinded |
| McCarty 1994 | Not double‐blinded |
| McIsaac 2004 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Milatovic 1991 | Not double‐blinded |
| Milatovic 1993 | Not double‐blinded |
| NCT00393744 | Not double‐blinded |
| Pacifico 1996 | Not double‐blinded |
| Perkins 1969 | Not double‐blinded |
| Pichichero 2000 | Not double‐blinded |
| Pichichero 2008 | Not double‐blinded (investigator‐blinded only) |
| Portier 1990 | Not double‐blinded |
| Portier 1994 | Not double‐blinded |
| Rimoin 2011 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Roos 1997 | Recurrent sore throat |
| Sakata 2008 | Not double‐blinded |
| Shapera 1973 | Not double‐blinded |
| Shvartzman 1993 | Not double‐blinded |
| Siegel 1961 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
| Standaert 1997 | Not only acute GABHS tonsillopharyngitis |
| Stelter 2014 | Review of results of tonsillectomy |
| Stillerman 1970 | No information on blinding and no data on clinical outcomes |
| Stillerman 1986 | Not double‐blinded |
| Tack 1997 | Not double‐blinded |
| Tack 1998 | Not double‐blinded |
| Uysal 2000 | Not double‐blinded |
| Van Brusselen 2014 | Review of tonsillitis guidelines |
| Zwart 2000 | Did not compare 2 different classes of antibiotics |
GABHS: group A beta‐haemolytic streptococci RCT: randomised controlled trial