Essential Evidence

Quickly and easily find the best available evidence to facilitate sound medical decisions Essential Evidence: Medicine that Matters is a collection of more than 350 of the most influential, compelling InfoPOEMs (Patient-Oriented Evidence that Matters) available, selected and organized by a panel of some of the world's most recognized leaders in evidence-based medicine. The book begins with two original, complementary chapters that provide a synopsis of some of the key concepts of evidence-based medicine, as well as tips on keeping up with-and finding-the most up-to-date medical news and information available. The remaining chapters are organized by disease category, providing one-page synopses on topics in: cancer; cardiology; caring for infants and children; complementary and alternative medicine; endocrinology; eye, ear, nose, and throat; gastrointestinal problems; gynecology; hematology; infectious diseases; kidney diseases; musculoskeletal problems; neurology; pregnancy care; psychology and substance abuse; respiratory problems; skin diseases; surgery and procedures; systems of care; and urology. The editors have sorted through all of the newest research findings to give physicians and healthcare workers only the most relevant and helpful information they need to care for their patients. Each of these concise, structured, and unbiased POEMs contains: Clinical question: Poses a question that the study seeks to answer Bottom line: A summary of research findings Level of Evidence (LOE): A rating from 1a (best) to 5 (worst) of how well the study is designed to avoid bias Reference: Displays the citation of the article being reviewed Study design: Identifies the procedures of the study (i.e., meta-analysis, randomized controlled trial, etc.) Setting: Identifies the environment in which the study took place (i.e., outpatient, inpatient) Synopsis: Provides a brief overview of the study design and results, based on the materials readers need to judge the validity of the research and to understand the results These easy-to-follow chapters can be read cover-to-cover or turned to for quick reference with the help of a useful index. A glossary of terms is also included.