Table 2.
Criteria for study quality
| Representative cohort | Items | Consecutively enrolled | Not consecutive/prospective | Not consecutive, retro, case / NA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Ascertainment of exposure | Items | International criteria | National diagnostic criteria | Non-validated criteria/NA |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Demonstration that outcome of interest was not present | Items | Yes | No | NA |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Initial steroid dose (daily) | Items | 0.6 mg/kg or 3–40 mg | 1 mg/kg or more | NA |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Dose of AZA (daily) | Items | 2–2.5 mg/kg or 50–100 mg | Less than 2 mg/kg or 50 mg | NA |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Record of how to use immunosupressor drugs | Items | Yes | No | NA |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Assessment of effectiveness of treatments for relapse AIP | Items | Yes | No/NA | |
| Risk of bias | Very low | High | ||
| Point | 2 | 0 | ||
| Relapse definition | Items | Clinical and radiologic relapse | Clinical or radiologic relapse | Not a clear |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Sufficient follow-up evaluation | Items | > 2 y | ≤ 2 y | Undefined |
| Risk of bias | Very low | Low | High | |
| Point | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| Adequacy of F/U schedule | Items | Definite schedule | Undefinite | |
| Risk of bias | Very low | High | ||
| Point | 2 | 0 |