Med Clin Barcelona
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C-reactive protein (CRP) has been considered a marker for infection and an aid for diagnosing sepsis. We analyze the relation of CRP to infection and outcome in intensive care units (ICU) patients. ⋯ CRP level on admission is an useful marker for early infection but not for outcome in critically ill patients admited to the ICU.
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The increase in the number of published systematic reviews and meta-analyses over the last few years has highlighted the need to establish guidelines for their publication, in order to facilitate their interpretation and use. The Quality of Reporting of Meta-analyses Conference, which took place in 1996, resulted in the QUOROM statement, consisting of a checklist and flow diagram. ⋯ The flow diagram of randomized clinical trials (RCT) helps to provide information about the number of RCTs identified, included and excluded in the meta-analysis and the reasons for excluding them. Both tools provide standards for improving the quality of reporting of meta-analyses to make them rigorous, useful and reliable.
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Healthcare research is extremely important, with the clear potential to influence treatment and prevention of disease, possibly on a global scale. Yet deficiencies in how research studies are reported are both well-documented and widespread across all medical specialties, types of interventions and study designs. Although randomised trials have received the most attention in this regard, similar concerns have been expressed about reporting of other types of research including diagnostic and epidemiological studies. ⋯ From this simple idea comes the scientific rationale of developing guidelines on how to report research. We consider desirable attributes of such guidelines, emphasising the importance of being evidence-based where possible. We describe recommended processes to produce guidelines that have evolved over several years during the preparation of a sequence of reporting guidelines including CONSORT, QUOROM, STARD and STROBE.